The present investigation aimed to compare the in vitro antimicrobial activity of prulifloxacin to that of levofloxacin and ciprofloxacin against recently isolated urinary pathogens. From our large bacterial collection, 978 non-duplicated clinical isolates, derived from patients’ urinary infections, maintained with minimal sub-culture deep-frozen at –70°C in a matrix of Brain Heart Infusion broth + 20% glycerol, were tested to determine MICs of prulifloxacin, levofloxacin and ciprofloxacin by means of the broth microdilution technique. For Gram negative bacteria no significant difference was observed between all three antibiotics. Enterobacteria showed a resistance rate ranging between 6% (Enterobacter spp) and ~20% (Escherichia coli). Antibiotic resistance of Pseudomonas spp was higher (30.3%). For Gram positive, all methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus strains were sensitive whereas 30% of methicillin-resistant and enterococci were resistant to all three antibiotics. Prulifloxacin exerts its antibacterial activity at lower concentrations than ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin. The in vitro activity of prulifloxacin against urinary pathogens and its high and prolonged urinary concentration following a single oral dose, suggest that prulifloxacin is an alternative to other fluoroquinolones for treatment of urinary tract infections.

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