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Evidence for the Efficacy and Safety of Tigecycline for the Treatment of Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia in Preterm Infants: A Systematic Review

Gorana Nedin Ranković, D. Krtinić, A. Nikolić, N. Pejčić, Nemanja Dimić, N. Milenković, I. Binić, Branislava Ranković

Life, 2026

Abstract

Background: Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is a common and serious nosocomial infection in mechanically ventilated preterm infants and is increasingly caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) Gram-negative organisms. Tigecycline, a glycylcycline with broad activity against many such pathogens, is not approved below 18 years of age and carries a boxed warning for excess mortality that is most pronounced in hospital-acquired and ventilator-associated pneumonia. Its role, if any, in preterm infants with VAP is undefined. Objectives: To systematically identify and appraise all human evidence on the efficacy (clinical cure, microbiological eradication, survival) and safety (adverse events, mortality) of tigecycline used to treat VAP or nosocomial pneumonia during mechanical ventilation in preterm infants and neonates. Methods: A PRISMA 2020 structured search of PubMed/MEDLINE, Cochrane CENTRAL, Scopus, trial registries, regulatory documents, Google Scholar and reference lists was designed without language or date restrictions. Eligible reports described tigecycline treatment of pneumonia/VAP in neonates or young infants; pediatric case series and syntheses were retained as contextual evidence. Because only case reports and small non-comparative series were anticipated, a narrative synthesis was pre-specified; JBI tools and GRADE were planned for appraisal and certainty. Results: No randomized controlled trial, controlled observational study,…

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