Drug Database: Amoxicillin / Clavulanate Potassium

What is amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium?

Amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium is an antibacterial prescription medicine approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of certain bacterial infections, such as lower respiratory tract infections, including community acquired pneumonia; ear and sinus infections; skin infections; and urinary tract infections.

Community-acquired pneumonia, a bacterial respiratory disease, can be an opportunistic infection (OI) of HIV. An OI is an infection that occurs more frequently or is more severe in people with weakened immune systems—such as people with HIV—than in people with healthy immune systems. To learn more about OIs, read the HIVinfo What is an Opportunistic Infection? fact sheet.

How is amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium used in people with HIV?

The Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Opportunistic Infections in Adults and Adolescents with HIV include recommendations on the use of amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium to treat community acquired pneumonia in people with HIV.

The recommended uses may not always be consistent with FDA-approved uses of amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium. See the Guidelines for complete information on recommended uses of amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium in adults and adolescents with HIV. Amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium may have other recommended uses not listed above.

What should I tell my health care provider before taking amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium?

Before taking amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium, tell your health care provider:

• If you are allergic to amoxicillin, clavulanate, other beta-lactam antibacterial medicines (such as penicillins and cephalosporins), or any other medicines.
• About any medical conditions you have or have had, especially:
  • Liver problems
  • Kidney problems, including if you are receiving dialysis
  • Mononucleosis
  • Phenylketonuria (PKU). Amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium chewable tablets and amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium oral suspension contain the artificial sweetener (aspartame) which contains phenylalanine. Phenylalanine may be harmful to people with PKU.
• About anything that could affect your ability to take medicines, such as difficulty swallowing or remembering to take pills.
• If you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. Talk to your health care provider about the risks and benefits of taking amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium during pregnancy.
• If you are breast/chestfeeding or plan to breast/chestfeed. For people with HIV in the United States, the Guideline recommends speaking with your health care provider to discuss options for feeding your baby. People with suppressed viral load have a less than 1% chance of transmitting HIV to their baby via their own milk.
• About other prescription and nonprescription medicines, vitamins, nutritional supplements, and herbal products you or your child are taking or plan to take. Amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium may affect the way other medicines or products work, and other medicines or products may affect how amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium work. Ask your health care provider if there are interactions between amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium and the other medicines you or your child take.

Ask your health care provider about possible side effects from amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium. Your health care provider will tell you what to do if you have side effects.

How should I take amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium?

Take amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium according to your health care provider’s instructions. Your health care provider will tell you how much amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium to take and when to take it. Before you start amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium and each time you get a refill, read any printed information that comes with your medicine.

How should amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium be stored?

• Store amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium film-coated tablets at or below 77°F (25°C).
• Store amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium extended-release tablets and chewable tablets at room temperature, 68°F to 77°F (20°C to 25°C).
• Store amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium dry powder for oral suspension at or below 77°F (25°C). The reconstituted suspension must be stored in a refrigerator. Discard after 10 days.
• Keep amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium in the container that it came in and keep the container tightly closed.
• Do not use amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium if the original seal over the container opening is broken or missing.
• Throw away amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium that is no longer needed or expired (out of date). Follow FDA Guidelines on how to safely dispose of unused medicine.
• Keep amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium and all medicines out of reach of children.

Where can I find more information about amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium?

• Recommendations on the HIV-related uses of amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium, from the Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Opportunistic Infections in Adults and Adolescents with HIV.
• This Patient Version drug summary is based on the following FDA label(s): Tablet (film coated), powder (for suspension); Tablet (multilayer, extended release); Tablet (film coated), powder (for suspension), tablet (chewable). The Patient Counseling Information section of the label includes information for people taking amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium.
• The American Hospital Formulary Service (AHFS) Patient Medication Information for amoxicillin and clavulanic acid available from MedlinePlus.
• Research studies related to amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium, from ClinicalTrials.gov. (The ClinicalTrials.gov search can be modified so that you can get results that better match your interests. To learn more about the ClinicalTrials.gov search features, please see How to Search.)