Duration of Antibiotic Therapy for Escherichia coli Bacteremia in Infants Without Cerebrospinal Fluid Evaluation.

OBJECTIVE: is a leading cause of Gram-negative rod bacteremia in infants. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) evaluation is often deferred, and guidance on antibiotic duration is lacking in these circumstances. We evaluated whether treatment duration is associated with infection recurrence or mortality. METHODS: bacteremia. Infants with CSF evaluation, delayed antimicrobial initiation (>2 days), or death/discharge during therapy were excluded. Antibiotic duration was categorized as 21 days. Associations between treatment duration and 30-day and in-hospital mortality and the combined outcome of recurrence of infection or death within 30 days were evaluated by using 2-way tabulations and inverse probability weighted regression adjustment (IPWRA) models. Sensitivity analysis excluded courses