Clindamycin is indicated in the treatment of:

Serious infections caused by anaerobic bacteria, including intra-abdominal infections, skin and soft tissue infections. As needed, clindamycin should be administered in conjunction with another antibacterial agent that is active against gram negative aerobic bacteria.

-          Tonsillitis.

-          Dental infection

Consideration should be given to official guidance on the appropriate use of antibacterial agents

Posology

Adults

The usual dose is 150 – 450 mg every six hours depending on the severity of the infection.

Elderly patients

Dosage requirements in elderly patients should not be influenced by age alone.

Paediatric population

The usual daily dosage is 3- 6 mg/kg every six hours depending on the severity of the infection (not to exceed the adult dose).

Clindamycin capsules are not suitable for children who are unable to swallow them whole. The capsules do not provide exact mg/kg doses therefore it may be necessary to use an alternative formulation in some cases.

Renal impairment

No dose adjustment is necessary in patients with mild to moderate impairment of renal function. In patients with severe renal impairment or anuria, plasma concentration should be monitored. Depending on the results, this measure can make a reduction in dosage or an increase in the dose interval of 8 or even 12 hours necessary.

Hepatic impairment

In patients with moderate to severe hepatic impairment, elimination half-life of clindamycin is prolonged. A reduction in dosage is generally not necessary if clindamycin is administered every 8 hours. However, the plasma concentration of clindamycin should be monitored in patients with severe hepatic impairment. Depending on the results, this measure can make a reduction in dosage or an increase in the dose intervals necessary.

Method of administration

Clindamycin capsules are given orally. The product should always be taken with a full glass of water in an upright position.

Absorption of Clindamycin capsules is not appreciably modified by the presence of food.

Severe hypersensitivity reactions, including severe skin reactions such as drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS), Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS), toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), and acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP) have been reported in patients receiving clindamycin therapy. If a hypersensitivity or severe skin reaction occurs, clindamycin should be discontinued and appropriate therapy should be initiated (see sections 4.3 and 4.8).

Clindamycin should only be used in the treatment of serious infections. In considering the use of the product, the practitioner should bear in mind the type of infection and the potential hazard of the diarrhoea which may develop, since cases of colitis have been reported during, or even  two or three weeks following, the administration of clindamycin.

Studies indicate a toxin(s) produced by clostridia (especially Clostridium difficile) is the principal cause of antibiotic-associated colitis. These studies also indicate that this toxigenic clostridium is usually sensitive in vitro to vancomycin. When 125 mg to 500 mg of vancomycin is administered orally four times a day for 7-10 days, there is a rapid observed disappearance of the toxin from faecal samples and a coincident recovery from the diarrhoea. (Where the patient is receiving cholestyramine in addition to vancomycin, consideration should be given to separating the times of administration).

Colitis is a disease which has a clinical spectrum from mild, watery diarrhoea to severe,  persistent diarrhoea, leucocytosis, fever, severe abdominal cramps, which may be associated with the passage of blood and mucous. If allowed to progress, it may produce peritonitis, shock and toxic megacolon. This may be fatal.

The appearance of marked diarrhoea should be regarded as an indication that the product should be discontinued immediately. The disease is likely to follow a more severe course in older patients or patients who are debilitated. Diagnosis is usually made by the recognition of the clinical symptoms, but can be substantiated by endoscopic demonstration of pseudomembranous colitis. The presence of the disease may be further confirmed by culture of the stool for Clostridium difficile on selective media and assay of the stool specimen for the toxin(s) of C. difficile.

Clostridium difficile associated diarrhoea (CDAD) has been reported with use of nearly all antibacterial agents, including clindamycin, and may range in severity from mild diarrhoea to fatal colitis. Treatment with antibacterial agents alters the normal flora of the colon leading to overgrowth of C difficile.

C. difficile produces toxins A and B which contribute to the development of CDAD.

Hypertoxin producing strains of C. difficile cause increased morbidity and mortality, as these infections can be refractory to antimicrobial therapy and may require colectomy. 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.

Precautions: Caution should be used when prescribing Clindamycin capsules to individuals with a history of gastro-intestinal disease, especially colitis.

Since clindamycin does not diffuse adequately into cerebrospinal fluid, the drug should not be used in the treatment of meningitis.

Laboratory tests for renal and hepatic function should be carried out during prolonged therapy. Close monitoring is also recommended in patients with renal or hepatic insufficiency and in neonates and infants, all of whom may require dose reduction and/or an extended interval between doses.

Prolonged administration of Clindamycin capsules, as with any anti-infective, may result in super

– infection due to organisms resistant to clindamycin.

Care should be observed in the use of Clindamycin capsules in atopic individuals.

Patients with rare hereditary problems of galactose intolerance, the Lapp lactase deficiency or glucose-galactose malabsorption should not take this medicine.

The choice of clindamycin should be based on factors such as severity of the infection, the prevalence of resistance to other suitable agents and the risk of selecting clindamycin-resistant bacteria

Clindamycin administered by injection has been shown to have neuromuscular blocking properties that may enhance the action of other neuromuscular blocking agents. It should be used with caution, therefore, in patients receiving such agents.

Antagonism has been demonstrated between clindamycin and erythromycin and its chemically-related macrolides in vitro. Because of possible clinical significance, the two drugs should not be administered concurrently.

Vitamin K antagonists

Increased coagulation tests (PT/INR) and/or bleeding, have been reported in patients treated with clindamycin in combination with a vitamin K antagonist (e.g. warfarin, acenocoumarol and fluindione). Coagulation tests, therefore, should be frequently monitored in patients treated with vitamin K antagonists.

 Pregnancy

Clindamycin crosses the placenta in humans. After multiple doses, amniotic fluid concentrations were approximately 30% of maternal blood concentrations.

In clinical trials with pregnant women, the systemic administration of clindamycin during the second and third trimesters has not been associated with an increased frequency of congenital abnormalities. There are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women during the first trimester of pregnancy.

Oral and subcutaneous reproductive toxicity studies in rats and rabbits revealed no evidence of impaired fertility or harm to the fetus due to clindamycin, except at doses that caused maternal toxicity. Animal reproduction studies are not always predictive of human response.

Breast-feeding

Clindamycin is excreted in breast milk. Orally and parenterally administered clindamycin has been reported to appear in human breast milk in ranges from 0.7 to 3.8µg/mL. Because of the potential for serious adverse reactions in nursing infants, clindamycin should not be taken by nursing mothers.

Fertility

In animal studies, clindamycin had no effect on fertility or mating ability (see Section 5.3).

Clindamycin has no or negligible influence on the ability to drive and use machines.

The table below lists the adverse reactions identified through clinical trial experience and post-marketing surveillance by system organ class and frequency.The frequency grouping is defined using the following convention:

very common (≥1/10); common (≥1/100 to <1/10); uncommon (≥1/1,000 to <1/100); rare (≥1/10,000 to <1/1,000), very rare (<1/10,000) and not known (cannot be estimated from the available data). Within each frequency grouping, undesirable effects are presented in order  o

* ADR identified post-marketing. # See section 4.4.

To report any side effect(s):

• Saudi Arabia:
  • The National Pharmacovigilance Centre (NPC)
    • Fax: +966-11-205-7662
    • SFDA Call Center: 19999
    • E-mail: npc.drug@sfda.gov.sa
    • Website: https://ade.sfda.gov.sa 
• Other GCC States:
  Please contact the relevant competent authority.

The serum biological half-life of clindamycin is 2.4 hours. Clindamycin cannot readily be removed from the blood by dialysis or peritoneal dialysis.

If an allergic adverse reaction occurs, therapy should be with the usual emergency treatments, including corticosteroids, adrenaline and antihistamines.

Pharmacotherapeutic group:

Lincosamides, ATC code: J01FF01.

Mechanism of action:

Clindamycin is a lincosamide antibiotic with a primarily bacteriostatic action against Gram- positive aerobes and a wide range of anaerobic bacteria. Lincosamides such as Clindamycin bind to the 50S subunit of the bacterial ribosome similarly to macrolides such as erythromycin and inhibit the early stages of protein synthesis.

Clindamycin has predominantly bacteriostatic action although high concentrations may be slowly bactericidal against sensitive strains.

Mechanisms of resistance:

Resistance to clindamycin usually occurs via macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B (MLSB) type of resistance, which may be constitutive or inducible.

Breakpoints

The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) breakpoints are as follows: Eucast

Staphylococci: sensitive ≤ 0.5 resistant > 0.5

Streptococci ABCG and pneumoniae: sensitive ≤ 0.5 resistant > 0.5 Gram positive anaerobes: sensitive ≤ 4 resistant > 4

Gram negative anaerobes: ≤ 4 resistant > 4

Susceptibility:

The prevalence of acquired resistance may vary geographically and with time for selected species

and local information on resistance is desirable, particularly when treating severe infections. As necessary, expert advice should be sought when local prevalence of resistance is such that the utility of the agent in at least some types of infections is questionable.

*Up to 50% of methicillin-susceptible S. aureus have been reported to be resistant to clindamycin in some areas. More than 90% of methicillin-resistant S.aureus (MRSA) are resistant to clindamycin and it should not be used while awaiting susceptibility test results if there is any suspicion of MRSA

Absorption

After oral administration clindamycin is absorbed quickly and almost completely (>90%). The absorption is not affected by food. The peak plasma concentration is achieved within approximately 45 minutes after oral administration. The bioavailability is non-linear and  decreases with increasing doses. Following a 600 mg dose the absolute bioavailability is 53±14%.

Distribution

Clindamycin is widely distributed in body fluids and tissues. It diffuses across the placenta but not the healthy blood-brain barrier. 68 – 93 % of clindamycin in the circulation is bound to plasma proteins. Clindamycin is distributed very highly intracellular due to the lipophilic properties. The intracellular concentrations are 10-50 times higher than the extracellular concentrations.

Biotransformation

Clindamycin undergoes metabolism, presumably in the liver, to the active N-demethyl and sulphoxide metabolites, and also some inactive metabolites and about 4% in the faeces: the remainder is excreted as inactive metabolites.

Elimination

Half-life is approximately two and a half hour in children and approximately 3 hours in adults. Clindamycin is excreted as biological active and biological inactive metabolites in faeces, urine and bile. Faecal excretion is predominant. About 10% of the drug is excreted in the urine as active drug and about 4% in the faeces; the remainder is excreted as inactive metabolites.

Characteristics in patients

Elderly:

The half-life, volume of distribution and clearance, and extent of absorption after administration of clindamycin are not altered by increased age.

In patients with reduced renal function:

In the presence of kidney diseases, elimination half-life is prolonged; however, a dosage reduction is unnecessary in the event of mild to moderate impairment of renal function.

In patients with reduced liver function:

In patients with moderate to severe reduced liver function the half-life is prolonged, but when giving the dose every 8 hour accumulation is rarely seen. Dose reduction is normally not necessary in patients with reduced liver function.

Preclinical data reveal no special hazard for humans based on studies of repeat dose toxicity, reproductive toxicity or genotoxicity. Carcinogenicity studies have not been conducted.

In dogs, repeated high oral doses produced ulceration of the mucosa of the stomach and gall bladder

Capsule Contents Lactose Monohydrate Maize Starch Magnesium Stearate Talc

Capsule Body & Cap Gelatine Titanium dioxide (E171) Patent blue V (E131)

Not applicable

No special precautions for storage.

Blister packs composed of PVC / PE / PVdC aluminium foil; pack sizes: 4, 8, 16, 20, 24, 30, 32,

40 and 100.

Not all pack sizes may be marketed.

No special requirements.