What Is Ceftaroline?

Ceftaroline is an antibiotic that can treat certain infectious causes of pneumonia and skin infections. It can attack a variety of bacterial species. The drug is produced as a powder for injection.

Infections of the lungs can be caused by a variety of bacteria. Ceftaroline can cure infections caused by organisms such as Streptococcus pneumoniae, Escherichia coli or Staphylococcus aureus. Haemophilus influenzae and Klebsiella species also are susceptible to the drug. In the case of skin infections, the antibiotic can kill the same Klebsiella and Escherichia species that cause lung infections, along with S. aureus and two other Streptococcus species.

A typical regimen of ceftaroline involves an injection into a vein twice a day. The time that the needle takes to inject the drug can be about one hour, and the injection routine can last for as long as two weeks. The antibiotic injection might be administered in a hospital, or the consumer might be able to administer it at home. The entire course of drugs should be completed, because an incomplete course can leave remnants of the bacterial infection still alive, which can then grow again and cause further disease.

This drug is part of the cephalosporin group of antibiotics. Allergies to this group of drugs are possible, and people who have had an allergy to a related antibiotic should not use ceftaroline, because death is a possible result. Allergies to penicillin or antibiotics related to penicillin can also indicate that the ceftaroline antibiotic poses an allergy risk. Pregnant or breastfeeding women also should consult a doctor before taking the drug, in case of adverse effects on the baby. Various medications, and even vitamin supplements, might interfere with the action of the antibiotic, so the doctor also should be informed of any of these that are being taken.

Less-severe side effects include gastrointestinal problems such as constipation, and the patient might experience soreness at the area of skin where the drug was injected. Severe gastrointestinal issues such as blood in the stool or fever can also occur within the two months following treatment. This complication of treatment can be colitis from an overgrowth of the bacterium Clostridium difficile in the intestine. Such as overgrowth is caused by the antibiotic killing off many beneficial bacteria in the gastrointestinal system, thereby altering the balance of the flora in favor of pathogens such as Clostridium difficile.