Dr. Ogbru received his Doctorate in Pharmacy from the University of the Pacific School of Pharmacy in 1995. He completed a Pharmacy Practice Residency at the University of Arizona/University Medical Center in 1996. He was a Professor of Pharmacy Practice and a Regional Clerkship Coordinator for the University of the Pacific School of Pharmacy from 1996-99.
Jay W. Marks, MD, is a board-certified internist and gastroenterologist. He graduated from Yale University School of Medicine and trained in internal medicine and gastroenterology at UCLA/Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
DRUG CLASS AND MECHANISM: Cefixime is a semi-synthetic (partially
man-made), oral antibiotic in the cephalosporin family of antibiotics. The
cephalosporin family includes cephalexin (Keflex), cefaclor (Ceclor), cefuroxime (Zinacef), cefpodoxime
(Vantin), cefprozil (Cefzil),
and many injectable forms. Like other cephalosporins, cefixime stops bacteria from multiplying by
preventing bacteria from forming the walls that surround them. The walls are
necessary to protect bacteria from their environment and to keep the contents of
the bacterial cell together; bacteria cannot survive without a cell wall.
Cefixime is active against a very wide spectrum of bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus pyogenes (the
cause of strep throat),
Hemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, E. coli, Klebsiella, Proteus mirabilis,
Salmonella, Shigella, and Neisseria
gonorrhoeae. The FDA approved cefixime in April 1989.
PRESCRIPTION: Yes
GENERIC AVAILABLE: Yes
PREPARATIONS: Tablets: 400 mg. Suspension: 100 and 200 mg/5 ml.
STORAGE: Tablets and oral suspension may be stored at room
temperature, 20 to 25 C (68 to 77 F), in a tightly closed container. Suspension
may be refrigerated or stored at room temperature after mixing.
DOSING: The recommended adult dose is 400 mg once daily.
DRUG INTERACTIONS:Probenecid (Benemid) may increase the blood
concentration of cefixime by decreasing removal of cefixime by the kidney. This
interaction sometimes is used to enhance the effect of cephalosporins.
Combining cefixime with aminoglycosides [for example,
tobramycin (Tobradex) produces additive
bacterial killing effects but also may increase the risk of harmful effects to
the kidney.
Exenatide (Byetta) may
delay or reduce the absorption of cephalosporins. Cephalosporins should be
administered one hour before exenatide.
Cefixime may cause a false positive urine ketone test.
PREGNANCY: Safety
in pregnancy has not been
established for cefixime. There are no adequate studies in pregnant women;
however, studies in animals suggest no important effects on the fetus.
Urinary tract infection (UTI) is an infection of the kidney, ureter, bladder, and/or urethra. Not
everyone with a UTI has symptoms. Common symptoms include a frequent urge to
urinate and a painful, burning when urinating.
Pneumonia is inflammation of one or both lungs with consolidation. Pneumonia is frequently but not always due to infection. The infection may be bacterial, viral, fungal or parasitic. Symptoms may include fever, chills, cough with sputum production, chest pain, and shortness of breath.
Most sore throats are caused by viruses or mechanical causes (such as mouth breathing) and can be treated successfully at home. However, a person should be seen by a health care professional if they have a sore throat that has a rapid onset, and is associated with a fever or tenderness of the front of the neck; a sore throat that causes the person to have difficulty swallowing (not just pain swallowing) or breathing; or if a sore throat lasts for more than a week.
Staphylococcus or Staph is a group of bacteria that can cause a multitude of diseases. Staph infections can cause illness directly by infection or indirectly by the toxins they produce. Symptoms and signs of a Staph infection include redness, swelling, pain, and drainage of pus. Minor skin infections are treated with an antibiotic ointment, while more serious infections are treated with intravenous antibiotics.
Strep throat is a sore throat caused by a bacterium called streptococcus (strep) that can be treated through antibiotics. Common symptoms of strep throat include pinkeye, runny nose, skin rash, cough, hoarseness, diarrhea and more. Complications of untreated strep throat include middle ear infections, meningitis, pneumonia, rheumatic fever, and more.
Bronchitis is a disease of the respiratory system in which the bronchial passages become inflamed. There are two types of bronchitis, acute and chronic. Symptoms of acute bronchitis include frequent cough with mucus, lack of energy, wheezing, and possible fever. Treatment may require medication such as bronchial inhalers and predinsone. Supportive treatment is focused on relieving the symptoms with fever reducers, cough suppressants, and rest. Treatment may be more aggressive in patients with pre-existing conditions such as empyema, COPD, or cigarette smoking.
Sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs,
are infections that are transmitted during any type of sexual exposure,
including intercourse (vaginal or anal), oral sex, and the sharing of sexual
devices, such as vibrators. Women can contract all of the STDs, but may have no symptoms, or have different symptoms than men do.
COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) is a disorder that persistently obstructs bronchial airflow. COPD mainly involves three related conditions, chronic bronchitis, chronic asthma, and emphysema. Symptoms of COPD include chronic cough, shortness of breath, frequent respiratory infections, wheezing, morning headaches, and pulmonary hypertension. Treatment of COPD is focused on the related condition(s).
Laryngitis is an inflammation of the voice box (vocal cords). The most common cause of acute laryngitis is infection, which inflames the vocal cords. Symptoms may vary from degree of laryngitis and age of the patient. Common symptoms include croup, hoarse cough, fever, cold, runny nose, dry cough, and loss of voice. Chronic laryngitis generally lasts more than three weeks. Causes other than infection include smoking, excess coughing, GERD, and more. Treatment depends on the cause of laryngitis.
Sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs, are infections that are transmitted during any
type of sexual exposure, including intercourse (vaginal or anal), oral sex, and
the sharing of sexual devices, such as vibrators. Although treatment exists for many STDs, others currently are
usually incurable, such as those caused by HIV, HPV, hepatitis B and C, and HHV-8.
It is thought that the tonsils and adenoids assist the body in fighting incoming bacteria and viruses by helping the body form antibodies. This is thought to be important only during the first year of life. Acute tonsillitis, strep throat, mononucleosis (mono), chronic tonsillitis, peritonsillar abscess, and hypertrophic tonsils and adenoids are all common problems involving the tonsils and adenoids. Treatment of tonsillitis and adenoids include antibiotics and other medications depending on the cause. In some cases, a tonsillectomy or adenoidectomy (the removal of the tonsils or adenoids) may be necessary.
Gonorrhea is a bacterial infection transmitted during sexual contact. In women, symptoms include a yellow vaginal discharge, burning or frequent urination, and redness, swelling, burning and itching of the vaginal area. Gonorrhea can be treated with injectable (penicillin) or oral medications.
Middle ear infection or inflammation (otitis media) is inflammation fo the middle ear. There are two types of otitis media, acute and chronic. Acute otitis media is generally short in duration, and chronic otitis media generally lasts several weeks. Seventy-five percent of children in the U.S. suffer from otitis media at some point. Treatment depends upon the type (chronic or acute).
Drug resistance (antimicrobial resistance) is the ability of bacteria, fungi, parasites, and viruses to grow, even in the presence of a drug that would normally kill it (or limit it's growth). Drug resistance is a growing problem, particularly for infections such as MRSA, VRE (vancomycin-resistant enterococci), tuberculosis, HIV, STDs, gonorrhea, flu, pneumonia, malaria, E. coli, salmonella, Campylobacter, which causes diarrhea and gastroenteritis. Learn how to protect yourself from resistance to drugs.
Air is pulled into the lungs when we breathe, initially passing through the mouth,
nose, and larynx (voicebox) into the trachea and continues en route to each lung
via either the right or left bronchi (the bronchial tree
- bronchi, bronchioles, and alveoli). Bronchi are formed as the lower part of the
trachea divides into two tubes that lead to the lungs. As the bronchi get farther away
from the trachea, each bronchial tube divides and gets smaller (resembling an
inverted tree) to provide the air to lung tissue so that it can transfer oxygen
to the blood stream and remove carbon dioxide (the waste product of metabolism).
Bronchitis describes inflammation of
the bronchial tubes (inflammation = itis). The inflammation causes swelling of
the lining of these breathing tubes, narrowing the tubes and promoting secretion
of inflammatory fluid.
Acute bronchitis describes the inflammation of the bronchi u...
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