THE STUDY herewith reported concerns the in vitro effect of neomycin sulfate (hereafter referred to as neomycin) and other antibiotics* on numerous strains of bacteria which were isolated from patients with various types of cutaneous pyogenic infections, including impetigo, ecthyma, pustular folliculitis, furunculosis, ulcers, paronychia, otitis externa, and secondarily infected skin conditions such as contact dermatitis, superficial fungus infections, atopic dermatitis and burns. In addition, other factors which influence the choice of an antibiotic for topical use will be discussed.
Neomycin is a comparatively new antibiotic, which was discovered in 1949 by Waksman and Lechevalier1; it is produced by a strain of Streptomycetes. Laboratory and clinical investigative studies of this antibiotic by the original investigators1 and by other workers have indicated the spectrum † of the drug, which includes an unusually wide variety of both Gram-positive and Gram-negative organisms.
Early reports on the parenteral administration