Carbenicillin and Pseudomembranous Enterocolitis

Excerpt

To the editor: Although first described well before the introduction of antimicrobial agents, pseudomembranous enterocolitis is now most commonly seen in patients taking antibiotics (1). Many agents have been implicated, including clindamycin and lincomycin; penicillin G, ampicillin, and amoxicillin; both oral and parenteral cephalosporins (including cephalothin and cephalexin); trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole; tetracycline; aminoglycosides (including gentamicin and kanamycin); and metronidazole and neomycin. To our knowledge, the following case report is the first to implicate carbenicillin.

A 55-year-old male presented with a history of three to five watery stools a day for 2 weeks. He was otherwise asymptomatic, except for mild abdominal cramping and