Pam,

Pseudomonas is a smart, tricky bug to defeat. You were lucky that your last sputum was negative after a strong dose of Levaquin.

Good infection control precautions, regular airway clearance are ways to lessen the chance of a reoccurrence

Below is information on Pseudomonas with many good references: https://www.bronchiectasisandntminitiative.org/Learn-More/I-am-a-Patient-or-Caregiver/Pseudomonas-Aeruginosa-Lung-Infections

Below is information on Pseudomonas from the CDC. You will read about the importance of handwashing in health care settings: https://www.cdc.gov/pseudomonas-aeruginosa/about/index.html

Beliw is a 7 page guide on prevention of Pseudomonas in a health care setting: https://isid.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/ISID_GUIDE_PSEUDOMONAS_AERUGINOSA.pdf

Pam,

Hello! Below is a medical article on a drug in the pipeline for Pseudomonas: https://medicaldialogues.in/pulmonology/news/colistimethate-sodium-effective-against-bronchiectasis-and-p-aeruginosa-infection-study-143449

In response to your question asking for comments, like you, I was colonized with Pseudomonas for a year or two and was on Levaquin frequently.The Pseudomonas did disappear for about a year from my sputum samples, but then it came back “heavy” rather than “moderate.”Levaquin did not work.I was in the hospital for the first time in June of last year with pneumonia and was treated for the first time with a port in my arm and the drug Cefepime for the Pseudomonas.I went home with the IV and Cefepime for 14 days around the clock.Felt better until I came off Cefepime and was sick again within a few days.The Cefepime did not work.I was then put on Cipro orally along with prednisone, and that did work.I’m currently on Colistin (colistimethate) in nebulizer for 28 days on, 28 days off and doing well for the last 7 months with sputum sample showing Pseudomonas down from heavy to moderate.I sometimes can stretch the period in between Colistin to 2 months instead of 28 days.My pulmonologist always asks the lab to grow out the sample to test for these bugs.It takes about 6 weeks, but when the results come back, they should list the drug susceptibility for whatever is showing up.

Biomx, a NJ bio company was doing studies on a drug that was promising in the treatment of Pseudomas, but they had some problems and did not have the funding to change the dosing schedule for additional studies.However, Clarametyx, another bio company, is also currently doing studies on a drug for Pseucomonas, so there is hope.

Hope that helps.

Das23,

Hello! Thank you for sharing your update. I am glad that Colistin is working for you. Thank you for the information on the drug under current research. We must always hold onto Hope- so much has happened in the BNTM space over the past decade.