Cefepime: adverse event reports filed with FDA

5,419

reports as suspect product

0% of all reports · about 241 a year

505

reports, 12 months to June 2026

636 in the 12 months before

95%

marked serious by the reporter

89.1% across the class

18.1%

record death among outcomes, as reported

983 reports · not verified by FDA

Reports by month, five years

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

2026 covers reports received through June 2026 only.

Reactions recorded in the reports

share of Cefepime reports recording the termmedian drug in cephalosporin antibacterial

1. Drug ineffectivethe medicine did not work as expected15.4%835
2. Acute kidney injurysudden loss of kidney function11.3%611
3. Off label useused for a purpose or in a way not on the label6.7%363
4. Encephalopathy6.7%361
5. Condition aggravatedthe condition being treated got worse4.6%249
6. Drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptomsDRESS, a severe reaction with rash, fever and organ involvement4.4%237
7. Confusional stateconfusion3.9%209
8. Pyrexiafever3.7%199
9. Rashskin rash3.4%183
10. Thrombocytopenialow platelets3.4%182
11. Neutropenialow neutrophils, a type of white blood cell2.8%154
12. Septic shockshock arising from infection2.8%152
13. Neurotoxicity2.7%148
14. Multiple organ dysfunction syndromeseveral organs failing2.6%142
15. Status epilepticus2.4%132
16. Acute generalised exanthematous pustulosis2.3%125
17. Myoclonus2.3%125
18. Renal failurekidney failure2.3%124
19. Febrile neutropeniafever with low white blood cells2.2%121
20. Tubulointerstitial nephritis2.2%117
21. Pneumonialung infection2.1%116
22. Sepsisa severe body-wide response to infection2.1%116
23. Diarrhoealoose or frequent stools2.1%115
24. Mental status changes2.1%114
25. Drug ineffective for unapproved indication2.1%113
26. Hypotensionlow blood pressure1.9%103
27. Deaththe patient died; cause not stated by this term1.9%101
28. Drug resistance1.8%95
29. Product use in unapproved indicationused for a purpose not on the label1.8%95
30. Clostridium difficile infection1.7%90

Top 30 of 849 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

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

Age and sex as stated in the report; the reporter's qualification is the primary source recorded by FDA. 59.4% of reports give the United States as the country of the event or reporter.

Reason for use recorded

The indication field is filled in by the reporter and is often blank; shares are of all 5,419 reports.

Drugs most often listed in the same reports

Other products listed in reports where Cefepime is a suspect product, whatever their own role. Co-listing means the two were recorded together; it says nothing about either product's part in the event. Only the 2,500 most-reported names are counted here.

In context

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

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.

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 Cefepime as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (9,024) 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.