Role of pentoxifylline and sparfloxacin in prophylaxis of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in cirrhotic patients.

This study was directed to evaluate the role of sparfloxacin and pentoxifylline in the prophylaxis of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in cirrhotic patients. Forty cirrhotic patients with ascites were included in the study. Patients were randomized into four groups in a blind fashion; each group consists of ten patients. Group one received ciprofloxacin (control group), group two received sparfloxacin, group three received pentoxifylline, and group four received a combination of sparfloxacin and pentoxifylline. Treatment duration was six months. Serum TNF- α level was the primary inflammatory marker of the study to evaluate the effect of the used medications. In group two, TNF- α level showed a statistically significant decrease in comparison with group one (P = 0.001), while in group three, TNF- α level showed nonsignificant difference in comparison with the control group (P > 0.05). In addition, group four showed a statistically significant decrease in TNF- α level compared to the other three groups (P < 0.05). The finding from our study indicates that sparfloxacin as well as pentoxifylline could be used in prophylaxis of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis. Combination of sparfloxacin and pentoxifylline showed some of synergism which may be useful in decreasing emergence of resistant strains.