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Getting the latest healthcare news for you
The POET II trial found that stopping antibiotics earlier — once patients with left-sided infective endocarditis stabilize — cut treatment time by 15 days without compromising overall safety. The tailored approach gave patients 13 more days antibiotic-free over six months. The trade-off: a higher relapse rate (5.1% vs. 1.6%), though most relapses were manageable without surgery.
The landmark POET II trial is challenging a treatment standard that's been in place since the 1950s. Published in the New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the ESC Congress 2026, the randomized trial found that tailoring antibiotic duration to patient response — rather than sticking to a fixed 4–6 week course — safely cut treatment time by about one-third in patients with left-sided infective endocarditis.
In the trial, 508 clinically stabilized patients were randomized to either stop antibiotics immediately (tailored approach) or continue for the full standard duration. The tailored group took antibiotics for a median of 26 days vs. 41 days in the standard group — a 15-day reduction. They also spent 13 more days alive without antibiotic treatment over six months. The overall safety profile was non-inferior, with fewer composite safety events in the tailored arm (8.2% vs. 10.7%). However, relapses were more common in the tailored group (5.1% vs. 1.6%), particularly among patients with E. faecalis infections.
Why it matters: Prolonged IV antibiotic courses carry real costs — drug side effects, hospital complications, antimicrobial resistance, and patient burden. A validated, response-guided approach could meaningfully improve care quality and reduce healthcare costs for a condition affecting tens of thousands annually.
