Oral-only Antibiotics for Bone and Joint Infections in Children

Exclusion criteria

• ✕. Severe disease, e.g. septic shock, or any concomitant infection, e.g. necrotizing fasciitis, requiring IV antibiotics in the opinion of the treating clinician.
• ✕. Complicated bone or joint infection, e.g. prosthetic material, infection secondary to or complicated by trauma, severe pyomyositis or other substantial soft tissue infections.
• ✕. Expected need of major surgery within the first 24 hours of treatment, e.g. drilling, debridement, fenestration, surgical drainage, synovectomy. Minor surgery as diagnostic surgical bone biopsy or diagnostic joint fluid aspiration including lavage is not a criterion for exclusion.
• ✕. Significant co-morbidities that might influence the choice of treatment or the course of the infection, e.g. immunodeficiency, immunosuppressive therapy, sickle cell anemia.
• ✕. Previous bone or joint infection.
• ✕. Antibiotic therapy for more than 24 hours before inclusion.
• ✕. Documented pathogen with limited treatment options that do not permit randomization, e.g. the pathogen is only sensitive to intravenous antibiotics.
• ✕. Prior enrolment in the trial