Indications & Uses
Dosage Reference
Reference Information Only
Dosages shown are general references from official sources. Always consult your doctor or pharmacist for personalized dosing.
Adults:
Adults: The recommended dose for mild to moderate infections is 1 gm every 12 hours. This may be adjusted depending on how severe the infection is, how sensitive the causing organism is, and the patient's condition. For severe infections, the dose may be increased up to 12 gm daily, given in 3 or 4 divided doses. Infections caused by sensitive Pseudomonas species will usually need daily doses greater than 6 gm. Children: The usual dose ranges from 100 to 150 mg/kg/day, given in 2 to 4 divided doses. For very severe infections, doses of up to 200 mg/kg/day may be needed. Neonates: The recommended dose is 50 mg/kg/day in 2 to 4 divided doses. For severe infections, doses of 150 to 200 mg/kg/day, in divided doses, have been used. Dosage in gonorrhoea: 500 mg as a single dose.
Side Effects
Adverse reactions to Cefotax are relatively uncommon and tend to be mild and short-lived. Reported effects include candidiasis, skin rashes, fever, diarrhoea, and transient increases in liver transaminase and/or alkaline phosphatase levels. As with all cephalosporins, pseudomembranous colitis may rarely develop during treatment; if it does, the drug should be discontinued and appropriate treatment started. Also as with other cephalosporins, changes in kidney function have been rarely seen at high doses of Cefotax. Giving high doses of cephalosporins, especially to patients with impaired kidney function, may lead to encephalopathy. Hypersensitivity reactions have also been reported, including skin rashes and drug fever, with anaphylaxis occurring very rarely.
Cautions & Contraindications
Warnings & Precautions
Cefotax should be used cautiously in anyone with a history of gastrointestinal disease, especially colitis. In patients whose urinary output is reduced, whether temporarily or persistently, due to poor kidney function, the usual doses can lead to unusually high and prolonged antibiotic levels in the body. For this reason, the total daily dose should be lowered when giving Cefotax to these patients, with further dosing guided by the degree of kidney impairment, the severity of the infection, and how susceptible the causative organism is. That said, there is no clinical evidence indicating that Cefotax dosing needs to be changed even in patients with severe kidney dysfunction.
Contraindications
Cefotaxime should not be used in anyone known to be hypersensitive to cefotaxime itself or to other cephalosporin antibiotics.