Ceftazidime Injection

Ceftazidime injection is used to treat certain infections caused by bacteria including pneumonia and other lower respiratory tract (lung) infections; meningitis (infection of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord) and other brain and spinal cord infections; and abdominal (stomach area), skin, blood, bone, joint, female genital tract, and urinary tract infections. Ceftazidime injection is in a class of medications called cephalosporin antibiotics. It works by killing bacteria.

Antibiotics such as ceftazidime injection will not work for colds, flu, or other viral infections. Using antibiotics when they are not needed increases your risk of getting an infection later that resists antibiotic treatment.

🔔 How should this medicine be used?

Ceftazidime injection comes as a powder to be mixed with liquid and given intravenously (into a vein) or intramuscularly (into a muscle). Ceftazidime injection is also available as a premixed product to be injected intravenously. It is usually given every 8 or 12 hours until 2 days after all signs and symptoms of the infection have disappeared.

You may receive ceftazidime injection in a hospital or you may administer the medication at home. If you will be receiving ceftazidime injection at home, your healthcare provider will show you how to use the medication. Be sure that you understand these directions, and ask your healthcare provider if you have any questions.

You should begin to feel better during the first few days of treatment with ceftazidime injection. If your symptoms do not improve or get worse, call your doctor.

Take ceftazidime injection until you finish the prescription, even if you feel better. If you stop taking ceftazidime injection too soon or skip doses, your infection may not be completely treated and the bacteria may become resistant to antibiotics.

Preventable medical errors kill about 22,000 patients a year, according to research from the Yale School of Medicine. That’s much less than a previously reported number of 250,000 deaths a year where medical error is to blame.

🔔 Other uses for this medicine

Ceftazidime injection is also sometimes used to treat patients who have a fever and are at high risk for infection because they have a low number of white blood cells, melioidosis (a serious infection that is common in places with a tropical climate), certain wound infections, and food poisoning. Talk to your doctor about the risks of using this medication for your condition.

This medication may be prescribed for other uses; ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

🔔 What special precautions should I follow?

Before taking ceftazidime injection,

• tell your doctor and pharmacist if you are allergic to ceftazidime, other cephalosporin antibiotics such as cefaclor, cefadroxil,cefazolin (Ancef, Kefzol), cefdinir, cefditoren (Spectracef), cefepime (Maxipime), cefixime (Suprax), cefotaxime (Claforan), cefotetan, cefoxitin (Mefoxin), cefpodoxime, cefprozil, ceftaroline (Teflaro), ceftibuten (Cedax), ceftriaxone (Rocephin), cefuroxime (Zinacef), and cephalexin (Keflex); penicillin antibiotics; or any other medications. Also tell your doctor if you are allergic to any of the ingredients in ceftazidime injection. Ask your pharmacist for a list of the ingredients.
• tell your doctor and pharmacist what prescription and nonprescription medications, vitamins, nutritional supplements, and herbal products you are taking or plan to take. Be sure to mention any of the following: amikacin, chloramphenicol, gentamicin, kanamycin, neomycin (Neo-Fradin), streptomycin, and tobramycin. Your doctor may need to change the doses of your medications or monitor you carefully for side effects.
• tell your doctor if you have had recent surgery or trauma; or have or ever had diabetes; cancer; heart failure; gastrointestinal disease (GI; affecting the stomach or intestines), especially colitis (condition that causes swelling in the lining of the colon [large intestine]); or liver or kidney disease.
• you should know that ceftazidime injection decreases the effectiveness of some oral contraceptives (‘birth control pills). You will need to use another form of birth control while taking this medication. Talk to your doctor about other ways to prevent pregnancy while you are taking this medication.
• tell your doctor if you are pregnant, plan to become pregnant, or are breastfeeding. If you become pregnant while taking ceftazidime injection, call your doctor.