Cefpodoxime is used to treat a number of bacterial diseases, including gonorrhoea (a sexually transmitted disease), pneumonia, bronchitis (infection of the airway tubes leading to the lungs), infections of the skin, ear, sinuses, throat, tonsils, and urinary tract. Cefpodoxime is a member of the cephalosporin antibiotics drug class. It acts by preventing bacterial development.

Colds, the flu, or other viral diseases cannot be treated with antibiotics like cefpodoxime. Antibiotic overuse raises the likelihood that you’ll get an infection later on that is resistant to antibiotic therapy.

Cefpodoxime is available as a liquid solution and tablet for oral consumption. Depending on the illness being treated, it is often taken every 12 hours for 5 to 14 days. Gonorrhea is treated with one dosage. The suspension can be taken with or without food; the tablet should be taken with meals. Cefpodoxime should be taken every day at roughly the same time. Ask your doctor or pharmacist to explain any instructions on your prescription label that you are unsure about following. Take cefpodoxime as prescribed by your doctor. Never take it in larger or less amounts or more frequently than directed by your doctor.

Before each use, thoroughly shake the suspension to combine the medication.

In the initial days of cefpodoxime therapy, you should start to feel better. Call your doctor if your symptoms don’t go away or get worse.

Even if you feel better, keep taking cefpodoxime until the prescription is finished. Your infection could not be entirely treated if you stop taking cefpodoxime too soon or skip doses, and the bacteria might develop an antibiotic resistance.

Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more details if you believe this drug should be used for something else.

Before taking cefpodoxime,

• If you have a cefpodoxime allergy, also let your doctor and pharmacist know. The same goes for any other cephalosporin antibiotic, such as cefaclor, cefadroxil, cefazolin (Ancef, Kefzol), cefdinir, cefditoren (Spectracef), cefepime (Maxipime), cefixime (Suprax), cefotaxime (Claforan), cefo (Fortaz, Tazicef, in Avycaz), penicillin antibiotics; any additional drugs; or ceftibuten (Cedax), ceftriaxone (Rocephin), cefuroxime (Zinacef), and cephalexin (Keflex). If you have a reaction to any of the components in cefpodoxime tablets or solutions, let your doctor know right once. Request a list of the components from your pharmacist.
• Inform your doctor and pharmacist about all prescription and over-the-counter drugs, vitamins, dietary supplements, and herbal products that you are now taking or intend to use. Mention any of the following: antacids (Maalox, Mylanta, and other brands), cimetidine, colistimethate (Coly-Mycin M), diuretics (water pills), famotidine (Pepcid), gentamicin, kanamycin, neomycin (Neo-Fradin), nizatidine (Axid), polymixin B, probenecid (Probalan) (Vancocin). Your physician might need to adjust the dosage of your drugs or keep a close eye on you for side effects.
• Inform your doctor if you have or have ever had kidney illness, colitis (a disorder that causes swelling in the lining of the colon [large intestine]), or any other gastrointestinal (GI; affecting the stomach or intestines) disease.
• Inform your physician if you are nursing a baby, intend to get pregnant, or are already pregnant. Call your doctor if you become pregnant while taking cefpodoxime.
• You should be aware that cefpodoxime suspension is sweetened with aspartame, which creates phenylalanine, if you have phenylketonuria (PKU), an inherited disorder that requires you to follow a particular diet to prevent brain damage that could cause severe intellectual incapacity.

Keep eating normally unless your doctor instructs you otherwise.

If you miss a dosage, take it as soon as you recall. If the next dose is soon due, skip the missed one and carry on with your regular dosing plan. To make up for a missing dose, do not take a second one.

Cefpodoxime might have negative effects. If any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away, let your doctor know right once:

• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Abdominal pain
• Vaginal edoema, redness, irritability, burning, or itchiness
• White vaginal spotting
• Headache

Some adverse effects can be very harmful. Get emergency medical care if you encounter any of the following symptoms, or call your doctor right away:

• Stomach pains, fever, or bloody or watery stools while receiving treatment or for two or more months after it is stopped
• Rash
• Itching
• Hives
• Breathing or swallowing challenges
• Wheezing
• Recurrence of fever, sore throat, chills, or any other infection-related symptoms

You or your doctor can submit a report to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting programme online or by phone if you have a serious side event (1-800-332-1088).

Keep this medication tightly closed in the original container and out of the reach of children. The tablets should be kept at room temperature, free from light, excessive heat, and moisture (not in the bathroom). Keep liquid medications tightly wrapped in the refrigerator, and after 14 days, throw away any unused medicines.

Unused prescriptions must be disposed of carefully to prevent pets, kids, and other people from ingesting them. You should not, however, dispose of this medication in the toilet. Instead, utilising a medicine take-back programme is the easiest approach to get rid of your medication. To find out about take-back programmes in your area, speak with your pharmacist or the garbage/recycling department in your city. If you do not have access to a take-back programme, see the FDA’s Safe Disposal of Medicines website at http://goo.gl/c4Rm4p for additional information.

As many containers (such as weekly pill minders and those for eye drops, creams, patches, and inhalers) are not child-resistant and are simple for young children to open, it is crucial to keep all medications out of sight and out of reach of children. Always lock safety caps and promptly stash medication up and away from young children where it is out of their sight and reach to prevent poisoning. http://www.upandaway.org

Call the poison control hotline at 1-800-222-1222 in the event of an overdose. Additionally, information can be found online at https://www.poisonhelp.org/help. Call 911 right once if the person has collapsed, experienced a seizure, is having difficulty breathing, or cannot be roused.

Overdose signs could include the following:

• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Stomach pain

Keep all of your appointments with your physician and the lab. To determine how you are responding to cefpodoxime, your doctor may prescribe specific lab tests.

Inform the lab staff and your doctor that you are taking cefpodoxime prior to any laboratory test.

Use Clinistix or TesTape (not Clinitest) to test your urine for sugar if you have diabetes and are taking this medication.

No one else should take your medication. Your prescription most likely cannot be renewed.

You should keep a written record of every medication you take, including any over-the-counter (OTC) items, prescription drugs, and dietary supplements like vitamins and minerals. This list should be brought with you whenever you see a doctor or are admitted to the hospital. You should always have this information with you in case of emergencies.