DRUG CLASS AND MECHANISM:
Erythromycin is an antibiotic in the class of antibiotics known as macrolide antibiotics which also includes azithromycin (Zithromax, Zmax) and clarithromycin (Biaxin). It is used to treat several types of infections including upper/lower respiratory tract infections, skin infections, acute pelvic inflammatory disease, erythrasma, etc. caused by bacteria such as Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and many others. Erythromycin, like all macrolide antibiotics, prevents bacterial cells from growing and multiplying by interfering with their ability to make proteins while not affecting human cells. Bacteria such as Haemophilus influenzae are resistant to erythromycin alone and must be treated with a combination of erythromycin and adequate doses of sulfonamides.
PRESCRIBED FOR:
Alendronate is used for treating osteoporosis in men and postmenopausal women. It also is used for Paget's disease of bone and osteoporosis caused by steroid treatment.
Erythromycin is used to treat the following diseases and conditions:
- Streptococcal infections of the throat ("strep throat") and skin
- Acute pelvic inflammatory disease (PID)
- Diphtheria
- Erythrasma
- Whooping cough (pertussis),
- Listeriosis (Listeria), and
- Intestinal amebiasis
- Infections of the lung (pneumonia) caused by streptococcal pneumoniae, mycoplasma pneumoniae, and legionella pneumophila (Legionnaires' disease)
- An alternative antibiotic for the treatment of syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia
Erythromycin also is used in patients who are allergic to penicillin for the prevention of recurrent rheumatic fever and infections of the hearts' valves (endocarditis) in patients with valvular abnormalities of the heart before they undergo dental treatments.