What Is Azithromycin?

Azithromycin seems to be an antibiotic. Thus, like others, it should help treat bacterial infections. Most patients may take it orally. However, an intravenous injection may be possible. It appears that children and adults can take this antibiotic. Some pediatricians will prescribe it for tonsilitis or ear infections. Most patients seem to take this medication for three to five days. Severe infections, though, may need ten days.

Antibiotics for bacterial skin infections appear to be fairly common. Azithromycin seems to be particularly effective, and it is one of the safe antibiotics for kids. Patients should finish all of the antibiotics pills their doctor prescribed. Otherwise, their infection may return, and they could have to deal with antibiotic resistance. Of course, understanding how azithromycin works should be helpful.

How It Works

Azithromycin appears to be a macrolide antibiotic. The first of this antibiotic class seems to have been erythromycin. It was isolated from Streptomyces erythraeus sometime in the 1950s. This bacteria may be found in soil. Azithromycin is the synthetic version of this medication.

It should help kill bacteria by attaching to a subunit on the ribosomes of bacteria. The specific one it seems to attach to is the P site of the 505 unit. This function should prevent bacteria from creating proteins and spreading throughout the body. This class of antibiotics appears to have the most significant effect on gram-positive cocci and intracellular pathogens.

Get more information on the potential uses and benefits of this antibiotic next.