Cefixime

Cefixime may be administered in the presence of impaired renal function. Normal dose and schedule may be given in patients with creatinine clearances of 20 ml/min or greater. In patients whose creatinine clearance is less than 20 ml/min, it is recommended that a dose of 200 mg once daily should not be exceeded. The dose and regimen for patients who are maintained on chronic ambulatory peritoneal dialysis or haemodialysis should follow the same recommendation as that for patients with creatinine clearances of less than 20 ml/min.

Cefixime should be administered with caution to patients receiving coumarin-type anticoagulants, e.g. warfarin potassium. Since cefixime may enhance effects of the anticoagulants, prolonged prothrombin time with or without bleeding may occur.

Beta-lactams, including cefixime, predispose the patient to encephalopathy risk (which may include convulsions, confusion, impairment of consciousness, movement disorders), particularly in case of overdose or renal impairment.

As with other cephalosporins, cefixime may cause acute renal failure including tubulointerstitial nephritis as an underlying pathological condition. When acute renal failure occurs, cefixime should be discontinued and appropriate therapy and/or measures should be taken.

Severe cutaneous adverse reactions such as toxic epidermal necrolysis, Stevens-Johnson syndrome and drug rash with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS) have been reported in some patients on cefixime. When severe cutaneous adverse reactions occur, cefixime should be discontinued and appropriate therapy and/or measures should be taken.

Treatment with broad spectrum antibiotics alters the normal flora of the colon and may permit overgrowth of clostridia. Studies indicate that a toxin produced by Clostridium difficile is a primary cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea.

Pseudomembranous colitis is associated with the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics (including macrolides, semi-synthetic penicillins, lincosamides and cephalosporins); it is therefore important to consider its diagnosis in patients who develop diarrhoea in association with the use of antibiotics. Symptoms of pseudomembranous colitis may occur during or after antibiotic treatment.

Management of pseudomembranous colitis should include sigmoidoscopy, appropriate bacteriologic studies, fluids, electrolytes and protein supplementation. If the colitis does not improve after the drug has been discontinued, or if the symptoms are severe, oral vancomycin is the drug of choice for antibiotic-associated pseudomembranous colitis produced by C. difficile. Other causes of colitis should be excluded.

A false positive direct Coombs test has been reported during treatment with cephalosporin antibiotics, therefore it should be recognised that a positive Coombs test may be due to the drug.

Drug-induced haemolytic anaemia, including severe cases with a fatal outcome, has been described for cephalosporins (as a class). The recurrence of haemolytic anaemia after re-administration of cephalosporins in a patient with a history of cephalosporin (including cefixime) – associated haemolytic anaemia has also been reported.

Reproduction studies have been performed in mice and rats at doses up to 400 times the human dose and have revealed no evidence of harm to the foetus due to cefixime. In the rabbit, at doses up to 4 times the human dose, there was no evidence of a teratogenic effect; there was a high incidence of abortion and maternal death which is an expected consequence of the known sensitivity of rabbits to antibiotic-induced changes in the population of the microflora of the intestine. There are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. Cefixime should therefore not be used in pregnancy unless considered essential by the physician.

Cefixime should not be used in nursing mothers unless considered essential by the physician.

Reproduction studies have been performed in mice and rats at doses up to 400 times the human dose and have revealed no evidence of impaired fertility. In the rabbit, at doses up to 4 times the human dose, there was no evidence of a teratogenic effect; there was a high incidence of abortion and maternal death which is an expected consequence of the known sensitivity of rabbits to antibiotic-induced changes in the population of the microflora of the intestine.

In the case of side effects such as encephalopathy (which may include convulsion, confusion, impairment of consciousness, movement disorders), the patient should not operate machines or drive a vehicle.