Pleural Antibiotic Concentrations informing Treatment (PACT) study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Pleural Antibiotic Concentrations informing Treatment study
IRAS ID
263731
Contact name
David Arnold
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
North Bristol NHS Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 5 months, 31 days
Research summary
When people get chest infections, fluid can sometimes build up around the lung. This is called a parapneumonic pleural effusion. In about 1 in 10 cases, the fluid itself becomes infected, this is called pleural infection. Pleural infection is usually treated by removing the infected fluid and using antibiotics to mop up the left-over infection.
Patients with pleural infection often receive long courses of intravenous antibiotics because doctors are uncertain of how well antibiotics reach the infected pleural fluid and whether bacteria are becoming resistant to them.
The Pleural Antibiotic Concentrations informing Treatment (PACT) study is observational and aims to see how well antibiotics are reaching the infected fluid, and how quickly the bacteria are being killed. To answer this, we will collect samples of pleural fluid from participants who are being treated for pleural infection with pleural drainage. This fluid will be tested to measure how much antibiotic has managed to get into it. We can then tell if the antibiotics are reaching high enough concentrations to kill bacteria. We will also be testing this fluid to see if the bacteria are being killed by the antibiotic or not. In the future, this information may shorten the time patients are treated with intravenous antibiotics and therefore how long they need to stay in hospital.
REC name
East of Scotland Research Ethics Service REC 1
REC reference
19/ES/0075
Date of REC Opinion
5 Jul 2019
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion