Pentamidine (PTM)

Pentamidine is an antimicrobial medication given for prevention and treatment of Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) caused by Pneumocystis jirovecii (formerly known as Pneumocystis carinii), a severe interstitial type of pneumonia often seen in patients with HIV infection. The drug is also the mainstay of treatment for stage I infection with Trypanosoma brucei gambiense. In the acute treatment of PCP, pentamidine is considered equally or slightly less active than co-trimoxazole (brand names Bactrim, Septrin, or Septra). Clinical evidence suggests that pentamidine is often better tolerated than co-trimoxazole because a high dose of co-trimoxazole is needed, which is associated with a high incidence and severity of side effects such as hepatitis, bone-marrow-damage, renal-damage, and life threatening skin disease (Lyell-syndrome). Moreover, many patients are or become allergic to co-trimoxazole.