Cefixime (Page 3 of 6)

7 DRUG INTERACTIONS

7.1 Carbamazepine

Elevated carbamazepine levels have been reported in postmarketing experience when cefixime is administered concomitantly. Drug monitoring may be of assistance in detecting alterations in carbamazepine plasma concentrations.

7.2 Warfarin and Anticoagulants

Increased prothrombin time, with or without clinical bleeding, has been reported when cefixime is administered concomitantly.

7.3 Drug/Laboratory Test Interactions

A false-positive reaction for ketones in the urine may occur with tests using nitroprusside but not with those using nitroferricyanide.

The administration of cefixime may result in a false-positive reaction for glucose in the urine using Clinitest ®** Benedict’s solution, or Fehling’s solution. It is recommended that glucose tests based on enzymatic glucose oxidase reactions (such as Clinistix ®** or TesTape ®**) be used. A false-positive direct Coombs test has been reported during treatment with other cephalosporins; therefore, it should be recognized that a positive Coombs test may be due to the drug.

** Clinitest ® and Clinistix ® are registered trademarks of Ames Division, Miles Laboratories, Inc. Tes-Tape ® is a registered trademark of Eli Lilly and Company.

8 USE IN SPECIFIC POPULATIONS

8.1 Pregnancy

Pregnancy Category B. Reproduction studies have been performed in mice and rats at doses up to 40 times the human dose and have revealed no evidence of harm to the fetus due to cefixime. There are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. Because animal reproduction studies are not always predictive of human response, this drug should be used during pregnancy only if clearly needed.

8.2 Labor And Delivery

Cefixime has not been studied for use during labor and delivery. Treatment should only be given if clearly needed.

8.3 Nursing Mothers

It is not known whether cefixime is excreted in human milk. Consideration should be given to discontinuing nursing temporarily during treatment with this drug.

8.4 Pediatric Use

Safety and effectiveness of cefixime in children aged less than six months old have not been established. The incidence of gastrointestinal adverse reactions, including diarrhea and loose stools, in the pediatric patients receiving the suspension, was comparable to the incidence seen in adult patients receiving tablets.

8.5 Geriatric Use

Clinical studies did not include sufficient numbers of subjects aged 65 and older to determine whether they respond differently than younger subjects. Other reported clinical experience has not identified differences in responses between the elderly and younger patients. A pharmacokinetic study in the elderly detected differences in pharmacokinetic parameters [ see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY ( 12.3)]. These differences were small and do not indicate a need for dosage adjustment of the drug in the elderly.

8.6 Renal Impairment

The dose of cefixime should be adjusted in patients with renal impairment as well as those undergoing continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) and hemodialysis (HD). Patients on dialysis should be monitored carefully [see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION (2.3)].

10 OVERDOSAGE

Gastric lavage may be indicated; otherwise, no specific antidote exists. Cefixime is not removed in significant quantities from the circulation by hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis. Adverse reactions in small numbers of healthy adult volunteers receiving single doses up to 2 g of cefixime did not differ from the profile seen in patients treated at the recommended doses.

11 DESCRIPTION

Cefixime is a semisynthetic, cephalosporin antibacterial for oral administration. Chemically, it is (6R,7R)-7-[2-(2-Amino-4-thiazolyl)glyoxylamido]-8-oxo-3-vinyl-5-thia-1-azabicyclo [4.2.0] oct-2-ene-2-carboxylic acid, 7 2 -(Z)-[ O -(carboxy methyl) oxime] trihydrate.

Molecular weight = 507.50 as the trihydrate. Chemical Formula is C 16 H 15 N 5 O 7 S 2 .3H 2 O The structural formula for cefixime is:

structure
(click image for full-size original)
  • Inactive ingredients contained in cefixime powder for oral suspension, USP are: colloidal silicon dioxide, sodium benzoate, strawberry flavor, sucrose, and xanthan gum.
structure

12 CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY

12.1 Mechanism of Action

Cefixime is a semisynthetic cephalosporin antibacterial drug [ see Microbiology ( 12.4)].

12.3 Pharmacokinetics

Cefixime chewable tablets are bioequivalent to oral suspension.

Cefixime tablets and suspension, given orally, are about 40% to 50% absorbed whether administered with or without food; however, time to maximal absorption is increased approximately 0.8 hours when administered with food. A single 200 mg tablet of cefixime produces an average peak serum concentration of approximately 2 mcg/mL (range 1 to 4 mcg/mL); a single 400 mg tablet produces an average peak concentration of approximately 3.7 mcg/mL (range 1.3 to 7.7 mcg/mL). The oral suspension produces average peak concentrations approximately 25% to 50% higher than the tablets, when tested in normal adult volunteers. Two hundred and 400 mg doses of oral suspension produce average peak concentrations of 3 mcg/mL (range 1 to 4.5 mcg/mL) and 4.6 mcg/mL (range 1.9 to 7.7 mcg/mL), respectively, when tested in normal adult volunteers. The area under the time versus concentration curve (AUC) is greater by approximately 10% to 25% with the oral suspension than with the tablet after doses of 100 to 400 mg, when tested in normal adult volunteers. This increased absorption should be taken into consideration if the oral suspension is to be substituted for the tablet. Because of the lack of bioequivalence, tablets should not be substituted for oral suspension in the treatment of otitis media [ see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION ( 2)]. Cross-over studies of tablet versus suspension have not been performed in children.

The 400 mg capsule is bioequivalent to the 400 mg tablet under fasting conditions. However, food reduces the absorption following administration of the capsule by approximately 15% based on AUC and 25% based on C max .

Peak serum concentrations occur between 2 and 6 hours following oral administration of a single 200 mg tablet, a single 400 mg tablet or 400 mg of cefixime suspension. Peak serum concentrations occur between 2 and 5 hours following a single administration of 200 mg of suspension. Peak serum concentrations occur between 3 and 8 hours following oral administration of a single 400 mg capsule.

Distribution

Serum protein binding is concentration independent with a bound fraction of approximately 65%. In a multiple dose study conducted with a research formulation which is less bioavailable than the tablet or suspension, there was little accumulation of drug in serum or urine after dosing for 14 days. Adequate data on CSF levels of cefixime are not available.

Metabolism and Excretion

There is no evidence of metabolism of cefixime in vivo. Approximately 50% of the absorbed dose is excreted unchanged in the urine in 24 hours. In animal studies, it was noted that cefixime is also excreted in the bile in excess of 10% of the administered dose. The serum half-life of cefixime in healthy subjects is independent of dosage form and averages 3 to 4 hours but may range up to 9 hours in some normal volunteers.

Special Populations

Geriatrics: Average AUCs at steady state in elderly patients are approximately 40% higher than average AUCs in other healthy adults. Differences in the pharmacokinetic parameters between 12 young and 12 elderly subjects who received 400 mg of cefixime once daily for 5 days are summarized as follows:

Pharmacokinetic Parameters (mean ± SD) for Cefixime in Both Young & Elderly Subjects
Pharmacokinetic Parameter Young Elderly
C max (mg/L) 4.74 ± 1.43 5.68 ± 1.83
T max (h) * 3.9 ± 0.3 4.3 ± 0.6
AUC (mg.h/L) * 34.9 ± 12.2 49.5 ± 19.1
T 1/2 (h) * 3.5 ± 0.6 4.2 ± 0.4
C ave (mg/L) * 1.42 ± 0.50 1.99 ± 0.75

*Difference between age groups was significant. (p<0.05)

However, these increases were not clinically significant [ see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION ( 2)].

Renal Impairment: In subjects with moderate impairment of renal function (20 to 40 mL/min creatinine clearance) the average serum half-life of cefixime is prolonged to 6.4 hours. In severe renal impairment (5 to 20 mL/min creatinine clearance), the half-life increased to an average of 11.5 hours. The drug is not cleared significantly from the blood by hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis. However, a study indicated that with doses of 400 mg patients undergoing hemodialysis have similar blood profiles as subjects with creatinine clearances of 21 to 60 mL/min.

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