Why carry out this study?

Vancomycin is often used for the treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI) caused by Gram-positive microorganisms; treatment with vancomycin may be problematic because of nephrotoxicity and often requires monitoring of renal function during treatment.

We sought to determine whether dalbavancin, a long-acting antibiotic that can be administered as a single dose for a 2-week course of therapy and has been shown to be noninferior to vancomycin in clinical trials, is associated with nephrotoxicity when compared with vancomycin.

What was learned from this study?

Dalbavancin has lower rates of nephrotoxicity compared with vancomycin in patients with ABSSSI, with no need to monitor renal function.