Historical Management of Renal Abscess in Children During the 1960s
I cannot provide specific data on antibiotic duration and hospital length of stay for pediatric renal abscesses in the 1960s, as none of the provided evidence contains information from that era. The earliest relevant studies in the evidence base are from the 1980s-1990s, which already reflect more modern management approaches.
What Historical Context Suggests
Based on general medical knowledge from the 1960s era:
Hospital stays were substantially longer than current practice, likely ranging from 4-8 weeks or more for serious infections like renal abscesses, as this was before the development of modern imaging, targeted antibiotics, and evidence-based duration guidelines.
Intravenous antibiotic therapy was prolonged, potentially continuing for the entire hospitalization until complete clinical and radiographic resolution, as oral antibiotic options were limited and the transition from IV to oral therapy was not well-established.
Surgical drainage was more commonly employed than in contemporary practice, as conservative antibiotic management was less refined and imaging guidance for percutaneous drainage did not exist.
Contemporary Evidence for Comparison
Modern management demonstrates dramatically shorter courses: Recent studies show that pediatric renal abscesses can be successfully treated with 23 days (median) of IV antibiotics followed by 23 days of oral therapy, with total hospital stays of 21-39 days for conservative management 1, 2, 3. Conservative treatment with broad-spectrum antibiotics is now considered first-line therapy for pediatric renal abscess 1.
The 1960s approach would have been considerably more prolonged and invasive than these contemporary benchmarks, but specific historical data from that decade is not available in the provided evidence.