A Placebo-Controlled Trial of Antibiotics for Smaller Skin Abscesses

There are limited data on the role of antimicrobials in the treatment of skin abscesses. In this trial, clindamycin or trimethoprim–sulfamethoxazole was found to facilitate more rapid resolution than placebo in the management of skin abscess under 5 cm in diameter. More than 4 in 100 people seek treatment for skin infections annually in the United States. 1 Abscesses are the most common of these infections, and the majority of patients are treated as outpatients. 1 Serious complications, such as bacteremia, occur in rare cases. 1 , 2 Staphylococcus aureus, including methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) strains, causes most skin infections, 3 , 4 but the appropriate strategy for the treatment of these infections has not been defined. Clindamycin and trimethoprim–sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) are recommended for outpatient treatment of abscesses because of their low cost and in vitro activity against community-associated MRSA and methicillin-susceptible strains, 5 but data on their . . .