Sixty Jordanian women with pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) were studied. Of these, 31 were given oral amoxycillin/clavulanic acid (augmentin) for a mean duration of 8.4 days and 29 were given a standard triple drug regimen of oral ampicillin, intramuscular gentamicin and metronidazole tablets/pessaries for a mean duration of 7.2 days. Bacterial culture (cervical and high vaginal swabs) was positive in every case, most often E. coli but sometimes more than one pathogen was isolated. No gonococci were isolated and tests for chlamydia in 16 patients (8 in each group) were negative, suggesting a dissociation between the etiology of PID and sexually transmitted disease in this Jordanian study. After 3 days of treatment, more patients in group I (augmentin) showed diminution of symptoms of pain and discharge (P less than or equal to 0.05) compared to group II. At the end of treatment, complete cure or satisfactory improvement was recorded in 93.1% and 92.9% of cases in the two groups, corresponding to in vitro bacterial efficacy of 90.4% and 96.5%, respectively. No serious side effects were noted in either regimen. The results of this comparative study suggest that oral amoxycillin/clavulanic acid (augmentin) may be a convenient alternative to the triple drug regimen usually administered for the treatment of pelvic inflammatory disease.