Amoxicillin plus clavulanic acid

You shouldn't take macrolides if you have porphyria – a rare inherited blood disorder. If you're pregnant or breastfeeding, the only type of macrolide you can take is erythromycin (Erymax, Erythrocin, Erythroped or Erythroped A) unless a different antibiotic is recommended by your doctor.

Erythromycin can be used at the usual doses throughout your pregnancy and while you're breastfeeding. Other macrolides shouldn't be used during pregnancy, unless advised by a specialist. Fluoroquinolones aren't normally suitable for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding.

The most common side effects of antibiotics affect the digestive system.

Side effects of antibiotics that affect the digestive system include: vomiting nausea (feeling like you may vomit) diarrhoea bloating and indigestion abdominal pain loss of appetite. These side effects are usually mild and should pass once you finish your course of treatment. If you experience any additional side effects other than those listed above, you should contact your GP or the doctor in charge of your care for advice.

Around 1 in 15 people have an allergic reaction to antibiotics, especially amoxicillin pills over the counter penicillin and cephalosporins. In most cases, the allergic reaction is mild to moderate and can take the form of: a raised, itchy skin rash (urticaria, or hives) coughing wheezing tightness of the throat, which can cause breathing difficulties.

These mild to moderate allergic reactions can usually be successfully treated by taking antihistamines.

But if you're concerned, or your symptoms don't respond to treatment, you should call your GP for advice. If you can't contact your GP, call NHS 24 111 service. In rare cases, an antibiotic can cause a severe and potentially life-threatening allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis.

Initial symptoms of anaphylaxis are often the same as above and can lead to: a rapid heartbeat increasing difficulty breathing caused by swelling and tightening of the neck a sudden intense feeling of apprehension and fear a sharp and sudden drop in your blood pressure, which can make you feel light-headed and confused falling unconscious. Anaphylaxis is a medical emergency and can be life-threatening if prompt treatment isn't given. Dial 999 immediately and ask for an ambulance if you think you or someone around you is experiencing anaphylaxis. Tetracyclines can make your skin sensitive to sunlight and artificial sources of light, such as sun lamps and sunbeds.

You should avoid prolonged exposure to bright light while taking these drugs. Antibiotics can sometimes interact with other medicines or substances.

This means it can have an effect that is different to what you expected.

Some of the more common interactions are listed below, but this isn't a complete list. If you want to check that your medicines are safe to take with your antibiotics, ask your GP or local pharmacist.

Some antibiotics need to be taken with food, while others need to be taken on an empty stomach.

You should always read the patient information leaflet that comes with your medicine.

You should completely avoid alcohol while taking the antibiotics metronidazole or tinidazole, and for 48 hours afterwards, as this combination can cause very unpleasant side effects, such as: feeling and being sick stomach pain hot flushes headaches. It's recommended that you don't drink alcohol while taking antibiotics.

However, as long as you drink in moderation, alcohol is unlikely to interact significantly with your medication.

Some antibiotics, such as rifampicin and rifabutin, can reduce the effectiveness of the combined oral contraceptive pill.

If you're prescribed rifampicin or rifabutin, you may need to use additional contraception, such as condoms, while taking antibiotics.

Some of the medications you may need to avoid, or seek advice on, while taking a specific class of antibiotic are outlined below. It's usually recommended that you avoid taking penicillin at the same time as methotrexate, which is used to treat psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis and some forms of cancer.

This is because combining the two medications can cause a range of unpleasant and sometimes serious side effects. However, some forms of penicillin, such as amoxicillin, can be used in combination with methotrexate.

You may experience a skin rash if you take penicillin and allopurinol, which is used to treat gout.

Cephalosporins may increase the chance of bleeding if you're taking blood-thinning medications (anticoagulants) such as heparin and warfarin. If you need treatment with cephalosporins, you may need to have your dose of anticoagulants changed or additional blood monitoring. The risk of damage to your kidneys and hearing is increased if you're taking one or more of the following medications: antifungals – used to treat fungal infections cyclosporin – used to treat autoimmune conditions such as Crohn's disease and given to people who have had an organ transplant diuretics – used to remove water from the body muscle relaxants.

The risk of kidney and hearing damage has to be balanced against the benefits of using aminoglycosides to treat life-threatening conditions such as septicaemia. In hospital, blood levels are carefully monitored to ensure the antibiotic is only present in the blood in safe amounts.

If aminoglycosides are used properly in topical preparations, such as ear drops, these side effects don't occur.

You should check with your GP or pharmacist before taking a tetracycline if you're currently taking any of the following: vitamin A supplements retinoids – such as acitretin, isotretinoin and tretinoin, which are used to treat severe acne blood-thinning medication diuretics kaolin-pectin and bismuth subsalicylate – used to treat diarrhoea medicines to treat diabetes – such as insulin atovaquone – used to treat pneumonia antacids – used to treat indigestion and heartburn sucralfate – used to treat ulcers lithium – used to treat bipolar disorder and severe depression digoxin – used to treat heart rhythm disorders methotrexate strontium ranelate – used to treat osteoporosis colestipol or colestyramine – used to treat high cholesterol ergotamine and methysergide – used to treat migraines.

It's highly recommended that you don't combine a macrolide with any of the following medications unless directly instructed to by your GP, as the combination could cause heart problems: terfenadine, astemizole and mizolastine – these are all antihistamines used to treat allergic conditions such as hay fever amisulpride – used to treat episodes of psychosis tolterodine – used to treat urinary incontinence statins – used to treat high cholesterol.

You should check with your GP or pharmacist before taking a fluoroquinolone if you're currently taking any of the following: theophylline – used to treat asthma; also found in some cough and cold medicines non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) painkillers – such as ibuprofen ciclosporin probenecid – used to treat gout clozapine – used to treat schizophrenia ropinirole – used to treat Parkinson's disease tizanadine – used to treat muscle spasms glibenclamide – used to treat diabetes cisapride – used to treat indigestion, heartburn, vomiting or nausea tricyclic antidepressants – such as amitriptyline steroid medications (corticosteroids) Some fluoroquinolones can intensify the effects of caffeine (a stimulant found in coffee, tea and cola), which could make you feel irritable, restless and cause problems falling asleep (insomnia). You may need to avoid taking medication that contains high levels of minerals or iron, as this can block the beneficial effects of fluoroquinolones.

This includes: antacids zinc supplements some types of multivitamin supplements. Learn about our expanded patient care options for your health care needs. Antibiotics are powerful medicines used to treat certain illnesses.

However, antibiotics do not cure everything, and unnecessary antibiotics can even be harmful.

There are 2 main types of germs that cause most infections.

Antibiotics cannot kill viruses or help you feel better when you have a virus.

Some viruses cause symptoms that resemble bacterial infections, and some bacteria can cause symptoms that resemble viral infections. Your healthcare provider can determine what type of illness you have and recommend the proper type of treatment.

Each time you take an antibiotic, bacteria are killed.

Sometimes, bacteria causing infections are already resistant to prescribed antibiotics. Bacteria may also become resistant during treatment of an infection. Resistant bacteria do not respond to the antibiotics and continue to cause infection. A common misconception is that a person's body becomes resistant to specific medicines.

However, it is the bacteria, not people, that become resistant to the

medicines

Each time you take or give your child an antibiotic unnecessarily or improperly, you increase the chance of developing medicine-resistant bacteria. Therefore, it is critically important to take antibiotics only when necessary. Because of these resistant bacteria, some diseases that used to be easy to treat are now becoming nearly impossible to treat.

Bacteria can develop resistance to certain medicines: Medicine resistance happens when bacteria develop ways to survive the use of medicines meant to kill or weaken them. If a germ becomes resistant to many medicines, treating the infections can become difficult or even impossible.

Someone with an infection that is resistant to a certain medicine can pass that resistant infection to another person.

In this way, a hard-to-treat illness can be spread from person to person.

In some cases, the antibiotic-resistant illness can lead to serious disability or even death. Resistance can happen if the bacterial infection is only partially treated. To prevent this, it is important to finish taking the entire prescription of antibiotics as instructed, even if your child is feeling better. This complicated question, which should be answered by your

healthcare

However, treating viral infections with antibiotics in order to prevent bacterial infections is not recommended because of the risk of causing bacterial resistance: Remember that antibiotics do not work against viral colds and the flu, and that unnecessary antibiotics can be harmful.

Talk with your healthcare provider about antibiotics and find out about the differences between viruses and bacteria, and when antibiotics should and should not be used.

If your child receives an antibiotic, be sure to give it exactly as prescribed to decrease the development of resistant bacteria. Never save the left over antibiotics to use "just amoxicillin 1000 mg uses in case." This practice can also lead to bacterial resistance.

Do not share your antibiotics with someone else or take an antibiotic that was prescribed for someone else. Antibiotic resistance is a problem in both children and adults. Remember that taking antibiotics appropriately and making sure your child receives the proper immunizations will help prevent having to take more dangerous and more costly medicines.

Talk with your healthcare provider for more information. Amoxicillin is an antibiotic in the penicillin class. Like other antibiotics, it treats bacterial infections.

It has no activity against viruses, such as a cold or flu. Doctors may prescribe amoxicillin to treat infections of the respiratory tract, ears, throat, skin, and urinary tract. https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/meds/a685001.html#brand-name-1 Amoxicillin (Oral Route). Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. Acne Inversa Myths Aortic Stenosis Asthma Service Dogs Blood Pressure Dangers CLL Leukemia COPD Life clavulanic acid and amoxicillin Span Eczema Skin Care Graves' Disease Heart Failure Tips Hepatitis C Survival. Kidney Disease Types Leukemia Facts Nasal Polyps Opioid Recovery Overactive Bladder Psoriasis Triggers Psoriatic Arthritis Sensitive Skin Remedies Telehealth for Diabetes Wet Macular Degeneration. Hypoglycemia Migraines Multiple Sclerosis Overactive Bladder. © Copyright 2020 Healthgrades Operating Company, Inc.

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A service of the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2020 Jan-.

Amoxicillin is one of the most commonly used antibiotics in the primary care setting. It is an amino-penicillin, created by adding an extra amino group to penicillin, to battle antibiotic resistance.

Amoxicillin covers a wide variety of gram-positive bacteria, with some added gram-negative coverage compared to penicillin. Similar to penicillin, it covers most Streptococcus species and has improved coverage of Listeria monocytogenes and Enterococcus .

It also has coverage over Haemophilus influenzae , some Escherichia coli , Actinomyces , Clostridial species, Salmonella , Shigella , and Corynebacteria . Amoxicillin is FDA approved for the treatment of genitourinary tract infections, ear, nose, and throat infections, lower respiratory tract infections, Helicobacter pylori infections, pharyngitis, tonsillitis, and skin and skin structure infections.

It is recommended as the first-line treatment by the Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA), for acute bacterial rhinosinusitis and as one of the treatments for community-acquired pneumonia.[1] For this, it is often in combination with a macrolide antibiotic.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends its use for post-exposure prophylaxis for anthrax inhalation.[2] It also has other off-label uses, such as erysipeloid, Lyme disease (if doxycycline contraindications exist), and infectious endocarditis prophylaxis, as well as prophylaxis in patients with prosthetic joints undergoing dental procedures. It can be effective in periodontitis in combination with metronidazole and is one of the first-line treatments for group A streptococcus pharyngitis.

Amoxicillin is in the class of beta-lactam antibiotics.

Beta-lactams act by binding to penicillin-binding proteins that inhibit a process called transpeptidation, leading to activation of autolytic enzymes in the bacterial cell wall.

This process leads to lysis of the cell wall, and thus, the destruction of the bacterial cell. This type of activity is referred to as bactericidal killing.

Amoxicillin administration can also be in combination with a beta-lactamase inhibitor. Some examples of these are clavulanic acid and sulbactam.

These beta-lactamase inhibitors work by binding irreversibly to the catalytic site of an organism’s penicillinase enzyme, which causes resistance to the original beta-lactam ring.