STANDARD VERSUS BIOFILM SUSCEPTIBILITY TESTING IN CYSTIC FIBROSIS

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This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. People with cystic fibrosis (CF) often have lung infections, which occur repeatedly or worsen over time. The lung infections are caused by bacteria. One of the more common bacteria in the lungs of people with CF is Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Pa). Treatment with antibiotics is used to stop or slow down the growth of the Pa. To help decide which antibiotics to use, samples of patients sputum are sent to the laboratory. The laboratory determines what antibiotics appear to work best to treat the Pa infection. This is called antibiotic sensitivity testing. Sometimes the antibiotic treatment is not as effective as we would hope. One reason may be that Pa in the lungs grows slowly in a thick mucus called biofilm. The current ways that we test for antibiotic sensitivity do not account for this biofilm. However, a new type of antibiotic susceptibility testing, called biofilm testing, has been developed. Because it better mimics what the bacteria is doing in the lungs, it may be more useful in choosing antibiotics to treat Pa lung infections in patients with CF. The purpose of this study is to compare the standard antibiotic sensitivity test to the biofilm sensitivity test in people with CF and Pa. Participants will receive 14 days of antibiotic therapy, based on the results of one of the sensitivity tests. Which test is used is decided totally by chance. At the end of the therapy, the amount of Pa in the lung will be measured, and we will see if the antibiotics selected by the biofilm sensitivity reduced the amount of Pa in the lungs more than the antibiotics selected by the standard sensitivity test.