The Whole blood bactericidal activity (WBA) is an ex vivo model for measuring the combined effects of administered drugs, host factors and strain factors on mycobacterial sterilisation. If performed in parallel with PK measurements, the method can be used to evaluate the effect of drugs throughout the dosing cycle. In a group of patients with drug-sensitive TB, WBA correlated with the rate of decline of sputum log colony counts, and was superior in patients whose sputum cultures converted to negative after 8 weeks of treatment. The aim of this trial is to investigate the bactericidal activity of faropenem administered with amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (augmentin) using the WBA model. We will also explore the synergistic relationship between rifampicin and faropenem/augmentin within this model.
