Abstract

Treatment with a single drug is appropriate for most bacterial infections. A combination of antimicrobial drugs is indicated only in a limited number of circumstances, of which the most clearly defined is the prevention of drug resistance, as in the therapy of tuberculosis. It may be necessary to use antibiotic combinations in mixed infections, or as a temporary measure in the treatment of severe infections before bacteriological findings are available; for example, in severe neonatal infections in which a wide range of potentailly pathogenic organisms have to be considered.