Editing Macrolide (section)

== History ==
The first macrolide discovered was [[erythromycin]], which was first used in 1952.  Erythromycin was widely used as a substitute to [[penicillin]] in cases where patients were allergic to penicillin or had penicillin-resistant illnesses. Later macrolides developed, including [[azithromycin]] and [[clarithromycin]], stemmed from chemically modifying erythromycin; these compounds were designed to be more easily absorbed and have fewer side-effects (erythromycin caused gastrointestinal side-effects in a significant proportion of users).<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Klein JO | title = History of macrolide use in pediatrics | journal = The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal | volume = 16 | issue = 4 | pages = 427–31 | date = April 1997 | pmid = 9109154 | doi = 10.1097/00006454-199704000-00025 }}</ref>