[Monitoring of vancomycin in pediatrics].

OBJECTIVES: The authors wanted to determine if the current local practice (initial prescription and monitoring) in pediatrics allowed reaching vancomycin therapeutic concentrations.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: Thirty patients that had received vancomycin for at least five days with at least one evaluation of serum concentration, at the Sainte-Justine university hospital center, were retrospectively studied. Vancomycin trough and peak levels were analyzed.

RESULTS: The values of vancomycin serum concentration were within therapeutic ranges (local standards of 5 to 10mg/L for trough level and 20 to 40 mg/L for peak level) in 60% and 33% of cases at the fifth day of treatment for trough and peak levels, respectively.

CONCLUSION: The current practice does not allow reaching vancomycin serum concentrations in the target range. Using a wider range for the trough values could be considered.