Erythromycin vs Clarithromycin

Antibiotics are very powerful and potent drugs. If penicillin was not invented, many people would have probably died due to infection. Drugs do wonderful things for us. If abused, they can also bring harm to our body systems.

One of the most common antibiotics being prescribed and given by our physicians are erythromycin and clarithromycin. Though both are antibiotics, it’s still best to know the differences between both drugs.

Macrolide is another family of antibiotic that is widely utilized for infections. Erythromycin and clarithromycin are both classified as macrolide antibiotics. However, the former is given to those who are allergic to penicillin. Both drugs were formulated by a Japanese company.

For the structure of both drugs, erythromycin is a pure antibiotic that was extracted from Streptomyces erythreus. Clarithromycin, on the other hand, is not a pure extraction of the said organism. It is a semi-synthetic macrolide.

For the brief history, erythromycin was discovered first in 1952 from Streptomyces erythreus. Clarithromycin was formulated by Taisho Pharmaceuticals in Japan during the 1970’s which is a semi-synthetic form of erythromycin.

Erythromycin is indicated for infections caused by certain microorganisms such as upper respiratory infections, lower respiratory tract infections, whooping cough, diphtheria, primary syphilis, legionnaire’s disease and a lot more. Clarithromycin, on the other hand, is indicated for moderate and mild infections such as pharyngitis, tonsillitis, community acquired pneumonia, and a lot more. Clarithromycin is said to be better in fighting a wide range of infections than erythromycin because it is superior against gram positive bacterial strains than erythromycin.

Clarithromycin is said to be more tolerable than erythromycin. Clarithromycin has also less gastrointestinal side effects compared to erythromycin.

Summary:

1.Erythromycin was discovered first than clarithromycin.
2.Erythromycin is a pure antibiotic derived from a certain microorganism while clarithromycin is a semi-synthetic macrolide antibiotic.
3.Clarithromycin is more superior in fighting illnesses caused by gram-positive bacteria than erythromycin.
4.Clarithromycin is more tolerable than erythromycin.
5.Clarithromycin has fewer stomach side effects than erythromycin.

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