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ERYTHROMYCIN is a brand name for Erythromycin. The medicine, its uses, side effects and dosage are the same regardless of brand.
Used for: For the prophylaxis and treatment of infections caused by erythromycin-sensitive organisms. Erythromycin is highly effective in the treatment of a great variety of clinical infections such as: 1. Upper respiratory tract infections: tonsillitis, peritonsillar abscess, pharyngitis, laryngitis, sinusitis, Bordetella…
Verbatim from this product's MHRA label. Tap a section to expand.
Posology Adults and children over 8 years: 1-2 g daily in divided doses for mild to moderate infection For severe infections this dosage may be increased to up to 4 g daily in divided doses. Erythromycin tablets should be taken when fasting or immediately before food.
Elderly:
No special dosage recommendations.
Children under 8 years:
An Erythromycin suspension is recommended.
Period of dosing with regard to indications:
Upper respiratory tract infections: 5 to 10 days Lower respiratory tract infections: 7 to 14 days or until the signs and symptoms indicate that the condition is cured. Legionnaire's Disease requires prolonged treatment. It is recommended that initially Erythromycin lactobionate intravenously should be administered.
Skin and soft tissue infections: 5 to 10 days. Acne may require prolonged treatment. Sexually transmitted diseases - NGU and syphilis: 10 to 21 days. Some conditions may require prolonged treatment. Oral and dental infections: at least 5 days.
Eye infections - Chlamydia inclusion conjunctivitis: 3 weeks. Gastro- intestinal infections - Campylobacter: a minimum of 5 days. Erythromycin is taken by mouth. Method of administration For oral administration.
The following undesired events, listed by body system, have been reported with erythromycin: Blood and lymphatic system disorders: Eosinophilia Cardiac disorders: QTc interval prolongation, Torsades de pointes, palpitations, and cardiac rhythm disorders including ventricular tachyarrhythmias.
Cardiac arrest, ventricular fibrillation (frequency not known).
Ear and labyrinth disorders:
Deafness, tinnitus. There have been isolated reports of reversible hearing loss occurring chiefly in patients with renal insufficiency or high doses.
Gastrointestinal disorders:
The most frequent side effects of oral erythromycin preparations are gastrointestinal and are dose-related. The following have been reported: upper abdominal discomfort, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, pancreatitis, anorexia, infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis.
4).
General disorders and administration site conditions:
Chest pain, fever, malaise. 4).
Immune system disorders:
Allergic reactions ranging from urticaria and mild skin eruptions to anaphylaxis have occurred.
Investigations:
Increased liver enzyme values.
Nervous system disorders:
There have been isolated reports of transient central nervous system side effects including confusion, seizures and vertigo; however, a cause-and-effect relationship has not been established.
Psychiatric disorders:
Erythromycin is excreted principally by the liver, so caution should be exercised in administering the antibiotic to patients with impaired hepatic function or concomitantly receiving potentially hepatotoxic agents. Hepatic dysfunction including increased liver enzymes and/or cholestatic hepatitis, with or without jaundice, has been infrequently reported with Erythromycin.
8). Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea (CDAD) has been reported with use of nearly all antibacterial agents including erythromycin and may range in severity from mild diarrhoea to fatal colitis. Treatment with antibacterial agents alters the normal flora of the colon, which may lead to overgrowth of C.
difficile. CDAD must be considered in all patients who present with diarrhoea following antibiotic use. Careful medical history is necessary since CDAD has been reported to occur over two months after the administration of antibacterial agents.
As with other macrolides, rare serious allergic reactions, including acute generalised exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP) have been reported. If an allergic reaction occurs, the drug should be discontinued, and appropriate therapy should be instituted.
Physicians should be aware that reappearance of the allergic symptoms may occur when symptomatic therapy is discontinued. 8). Fatalities have been reported. Erythromycin should be used with caution in the following; Patients with coronary artery disease, severe cardiac insufficiency, conduction disturbances or clinically relevant bradycardia.
5). 8). Epidemiological studies investigating the risk of adverse cardiovascular outcomes with macrolides have shown variable results. Some observational studies have identified a rare short-term risk of arrhythmia, myocardial infarction and cardiovascular mortality associated with macrolides including erythromycin.
Consideration of these findings should be balanced with treatment benefits when prescribing erythromycin. There have been reports suggesting erythromycin does not reach the foetus in adequate concentrations to prevent congenital syphilis.
1. Erythromycin is contraindicated in patients taking simvastatin, tolterodine, mizolastine, amisulpride, astemizole, terfenadine, domperidone, cisapride or pimozide. 5). Erythromycin should not be given to patients with electrolyte disturbances (hypokalaemia, hypomagnesaemia due to the risk of prolongation of QT interval).
Erythromycin is contraindicated with ergotamine and dihydroergotamine. 5).
Not medical advice. Always read the patient information leaflet and follow your prescriber or pharmacist.
Other brands of Erythromycin in United Kingdom.
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Hallucinations.
Eye disorders:
Mitochondrial optic neuropathy.
Renal and urinary disorders:
Interstitial nephritis.
Skin and subcutaneous tissue disorders:
Skin eruptions, pruritus, urticaria, exanthema, angioedema, Stevens-Johnson syndrome, toxic epidermal necrolysis, erythema multiforme. Not known: acute generalised exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP).
Vascular disorders:
Hypotension. Reporting of suspected adverse reactions Reporting suspected adverse reactions after authorisation of the medicinal product is important. It allows continued monitoring of the benefit/risk balance of the medicinal product.
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Infants born to women treated during pregnancy with oral erythromycin for early syphilis should be treated with an appropriate penicillin regimen. There have been reports that erythromycin may aggravate the weakness of patients with myasthenia gravis.
Erythromycin interferes with the fluorometric determination of urinary catecholamines. Rhabdomyolysis with or without renal impairment has been reported in seriously ill patients receiving erythromycin concomitantly with statins. 5).
There have been reports of infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis (IHPS) occurring in infants following erythromycin therapy. Epidemiological studies including data from meta-analyses suggest a 2-3-fold increase in the risk of IHPS following exposure to erythromycin in infancy.
This risk is highest following exposure to erythromycin during the first 14 days of life. 2%) following exposure to erythromycin during this time period. 2%. Since erythromycin may be used in the treatment of conditions in infants which are associated with significant mortality or morbidity (such as pertussis or chlamydia), the benefit of erythromycin therapy needs to be weighed against the potential risk of developing IHPS.
Parents should be informed to contact their physician if vomiting or irritability with feeding occurs. Erythromycin tablets contain the colour red E124 which may cause allergic reactions. Erythromycin tablets contain lactose. Patients with rare hereditary problems of galactose intolerance, total lactase deficiency or glucose-galactose malabsorption should not take this medicine.
This medicine contains less than 1 mmol sodium (23 mg) per tablet, that is to say essentially ‘sodium-free’.