Reported Reactions

Drugs › Cephalosporin antibacterial

Generic name

Cefaclor: adverse event reports filed with FDA

729 reports list it as a suspect or interacting product, 2004–2026. Class: Cephalosporin antibacterial. Also reported as Cefaclor Extended-Release Tablets.

729
reports as suspect product
0% of all reports · about 33 a year
38
reports, 12 months to June 2026
39 in the 12 months before
78.9%
marked serious by the reporter
89.1% across the class
4.8%
record death among outcomes, as reported
35 reports · not verified by FDA

729 adverse event reports received by FDA list cefaclor, a generic name as a suspect or interacting product, from February 2004 to June 2026. A further 829 reports list it only as a concomitant medication, and those are not counted in the figures on this page.

In the 12 months to June 2026, 38 reports listed it, close to the 39 of the 12 months before. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases. Over its reporting history that is about 33 reports a year and 0% of the 20,646,523 reports in the database, and 1.3% of the reports for the cephalosporin antibacterial class. How many people take it is not in the data, so a count is not a rate of occurrence.

The reactions recorded most often are drug hypersensitivity (33.5%), vomiting (15.9%) and nausea (15%). A report can list several reactions, so shares add to more than 100%; 321 different terms appear across these reports. Drug hypersensitivity is recorded in 33.5% of these reports, a larger share than in the median cephalosporin antibacterial drug (5%).

78.9% of the reports are marked serious by the reporter (89.1% across the class); 4.8% record death among the outcomes and 41% record hospitalisation, as reported. 44% of the reports came from other health professionals, and the largest patient age group is 45 to 64 (25.2%). FDA states that "a causal relationship cannot be established between product and reactions listed in a report" and that for any given report "there is no certainty that a suspected drug caused the event."

Reports by month, five years

059Jul 2021: 2Aug 2021: 5Sep 2021: 7Oct 2021: 9Nov 2021: 3Dec 2021: 42022Jan 2022: 6Feb 2022: 4Mar 2022: 4Apr 2022: 8May 2022: 4Jun 2022: 3Jul 2022: 4Aug 2022: 5Sep 2022: 5Oct 2022: 0Nov 2022: 3Dec 2022: 12023Jan 2023: 3Feb 2023: 4Mar 2023: 2Apr 2023: 1May 2023: 0Jun 2023: 2Jul 2023: 2Aug 2023: 1Sep 2023: 3Oct 2023: 4Nov 2023: 3Dec 2023: 32024Jan 2024: 4Feb 2024: 2Mar 2024: 3Apr 2024: 3May 2024: 1Jun 2024: 2Jul 2024: 1Aug 2024: 3Sep 2024: 2Oct 2024: 4Nov 2024: 3Dec 2024: 62025Jan 2025: 9Feb 2025: 2Mar 2025: 0Apr 2025: 3May 2025: 1Jun 2025: 5Jul 2025: 0Aug 2025: 2Sep 2025: 8Oct 2025: 3Nov 2025: 1Dec 2025: 22026Jan 2026: 4Feb 2026: 4Mar 2026: 5Apr 2026: 0May 2026: 8Jun 2026: 1

Reports by the month FDA received them. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases.

By year received

034672004: 3420042005: 342006: 152007: 1520072008: 92009: 102010: 1220102011: 282012: 322013: 3820132014: 362015: 262016: 4720162017: 182018: 562019: 6720192020: 352021: 502022: 4720222023: 282024: 342025: 3620252026: 22

2026 covers reports received through June 2026 only.

Reactions recorded in the reports

share of Cefaclor reports recording the termmedian drug in cephalosporin antibacterial

  1. Drug hypersensitivityan allergic-type reaction to a medicine33.5%244
  2. Vomitingbeing sick15.9%116
  3. Nauseafeeling sick15%109
  4. Fatiguetiredness12.8%93
  5. Drug intolerancethe medicine was not tolerated12.6%92
  6. Infectionan infection, type not specified12.2%89
  7. International normalised ratio fluctuation12.1%88
  8. Bloody discharge9.3%68
  9. Drug ineffectivethe medicine did not work as expected9.3%68
  10. Dizzinesslight-headedness or unsteadiness9.2%67
  11. Lyme disease9.2%67
  12. Urticariahives7.7%56
  13. Diarrhoealoose or frequent stools7.4%54
  14. Abdominal painstomach or belly pain7.1%52
  15. Dyspnoeashortness of breath7%51
  16. Rashskin rash7%51
  17. Hypersensitivityan allergic-type reaction6.7%49
  18. Malaisegeneral feeling of being unwell6.6%48
  19. Pruritusitching6.4%47
  20. Hypoaesthesianumbness5.6%41
  21. Iron deficiency5.6%41
  22. Rash erythematousa red rash5.5%40
  23. Pain in extremitypain in an arm or leg5.3%39
  24. Angioedemadeep swelling of skin or mucous membranes4.7%34

Top 30 of 321 MedDRA preferred terms recorded across these reports, with a plain-language gloss where one is available. One report can record several terms. The hollow bar is the median share across the 17 drugs in the cephalosporin antibacterial class; it describes the reports, not the patients. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic."

Outcomes recorded

Death4.8%35
Life-threatening7.1%52
Hospitalisation (initial or prolonged)41%299
Disability9.6%70
Congenital anomaly0.7%5
Other serious51.9%378
Not serious21.1%154

Outcome flags as the reporter set them; a report can carry several, and "other serious" is FDA's own category for serious reports outside the named outcomes. Grey bar: all 57,006 reports in the class. FDA has not verified any outcome and states that the reports "cannot be used to estimate the incidence of these events."

Patients and reporters

Patient age

Under 25.1%37
2 to 117.1%52
12 to 171.9%14
18 to 4415.5%113
45 to 6425.2%184
65 to 747.5%55
75 and over6%44
Age not given31.6%230

Patient sex

Female57.1%416
Male25%182
Not given18%131

Who reported

Physician30.6%223
Pharmacist3.2%23
Other health professional44%321
Lawyer0%0
Consumer or non-health professional16.5%120
Not given5.8%42

Age and sex as stated in the report; the reporter's qualification is the primary source recorded by FDA. 25.2% of reports give the United States as the country of the event or reporter.

Reason for use recorded

Indication as recorded (MedDRA)ReportsShare
Upper respiratory tract infection152.1%
Cystitis141.9%
Rheumatoid arthritis121.6%
Urinary tract infection111.5%
Infection prophylaxis101.4%
Oral candidiasis71%

The indication field is filled in by the reporter and is often blank; shares are of all 729 reports.

In context

MeasureCefaclorCephalosporin antibacterialAll reports
Reports as suspect product72957,00620,646,523
Share of that pool—1.3%0%
Reports, latest 12 months38—1,332,454
Marked serious78.9%89.1%57.4%
Death recorded among outcomes, per 1,000 reports4813391
Hospitalisation recorded, per 1,000 reports410454213
Consumer-filed share16.5%11.7%45.8%
Top term, share of reportsDrug hypersensitivity 33.5%median 5%0.9%

Shares are of reports, not of patients treated. The number of people taking a product is not in the data, so none of these figures is a rate, and differences between columns reflect who takes a product, who reports and how long it has been sold. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic."

Other drugs in the cephalosporin antibacterial class

DrugName typeReportsLatest 12 monthsMarked serious
Ceftriaxonegeneric17,1551,29493.7%
Cephalexingeneric5,64747270.6%
Cefepimegeneric5,41950595%
Cefuroximegeneric5,07829393.9%
Cefazolingeneric4,19329392%
Ceftriaxone sodiumgeneric3,77931193.3%
Ceftazidimegeneric3,31624196.7%
Cefotaximegeneric2,21010498.1%
Cefuroxime axetilgeneric2,10017275.7%
Cefdinirgeneric1,6148350.3%
Cefazolin sodiumgeneric1,33119195.5%
Cefepime hydrochloridegeneric1,0215186.6%
Cefiximegeneric9338689.8%
Zerbaxabrand8911866.1%
Cefuroxime sodiumgeneric8655197.3%

Ordered by report count for navigation only. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic." A brand and its generic are separate rows because reporters name them separately.

Questions about Cefaclor reports

How many adverse event reports has FDA received for Cefaclor?

729 reports list Cefaclor as a suspect or interacting product in the openFDA FAERS release of 28 Sep 2026, covering reports received through June 2026. 38 of them arrived in the latest 12 months. Another 829 list it only as a concomitant medication.

What reactions are recorded in Cefaclor reports?

drug hypersensitivity (33.5%), vomiting (15.9%), nausea (15%), fatigue (12.8%) and drug intolerance (12.6%). These are MedDRA preferred terms coded from what the reporter described; a report can list several, and a term's presence is not a finding that Cefaclor was responsible.

How serious are the reports?

78.9% are marked serious by the reporter. Among the outcomes recorded, 4.8% of reports include death and 41% include hospitalisation. FDA has not verified these outcomes and states that the reports "cannot be used to estimate the incidence" of the events.

Who files these reports?

other health professional (44%), physician (30.6%) and consumer or non-health professional (16.5%). Most reports reach FDA through the manufacturer, which must forward reports it receives.

Are reports for Cefaclor rising?

38 reports in the 12 months to June 2026, close to the 39 of the 12 months before. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases. Counts also move with how many people take a product, its time on the market and publicity.

Do these reports show that Cefaclor was responsible for these reactions?

No. FDA states that "a causal relationship cannot be established between product and reactions listed in a report" and that for any given report "there is no certainty that a suspected drug caused the event." The reaction may relate to the condition being treated, to other medicines, or to something else.

Is this a list of the side effects of Cefaclor?

No. It is a count of what was reported to FDA. The adverse reactions observed in clinical studies are printed on the FDA-approved label, which a pharmacist or clinician can go through with you.

How do I report an adverse event?

Consumers and health professionals can report to FDA through MedWatch (Form FDA 3500 online, or 1-800-FDA-1088), or to the manufacturer, which must pass reports on. See the guide on how to report.

Where this comes from. Counts are built from the openFDA Drug Adverse Event (FAERS) bulk export released 28 Sep 2026, which holds reports FDA received through 30 Jun 2026. Drug names are as reported, resolved to the brand or generic name on the FDA label where openFDA's harmonisation matched them; classes are the pharmacologic class (EPC) from the label and the National Drug Code Directory of 17 Sep 2026. A report counts here when it lists Cefaclor as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (829) are excluded. No report narrative, lot number, patient detail or reporter identity is published. See the methodology and sources; FDA's record is authoritative, and corrections are handled within five working days.

Drug data (FAERS) through 30 Jun 2026; device data (MAUDE) through 31 Aug 2026. Not medical advice.