There is no single drug treatment for MAC, but multidrug therapy reduces mycobacterial colony counts in blood. Mycobacterial colony counts are a measure of the degree of infection. Symptoms improve with treatment, especially reduction of fever. Side effects Amikacin can cause kidney problems.
Dose limiting toxicity usually occurs after a month.
A new less toxic form is being studied. Safety of this drug if you are pregnant or breast feeding has not been established. A side effect of amikacin can be hearing loss. This means that 15 mg of the drug is given for each kilogram of your weight, the dosage is divided in half and each half dose is given every 8-12 hours. The infusion takes 30-60 minutes.