Cefepime clinical pharmacology
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
Clinical Pharmacology
Cefepime is an antibacterial agent belonging to the cephalosporin class of antibacterials with in vitro antibacterial activity against facultative Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.
Pharmacokinetics
The average plasma concentrations of cefepime observed in healthy adult male volunteers (n=9) at various times following single 30-minute infusions (IV) of cefepime 500 mg, 1 g, and 2 g are summarized in Table 1. Elimination of cefepime is principally via renal excretion with an average (±SD) half-life of 2 (±0.3) hours and total body clearance of 120 (±8) mL/min in healthy volunteers. Cefepime pharmacokinetics are linear over the range 250 mg to 2 g. There is no evidence of accumulation in healthy adult male volunteers (n=7) receiving clinically relevant doses for a period of 9 days.
Absorption
The average plasma concentrations of cefepime and its derived pharmacokinetic parameters after intravenous (IV) administration are portrayed in Table 1.
 |
Following intramuscular (IM) administration, cefepime is completely absorbed. The average plasma concentrations of cefepime at various times following a single intramuscular injection are summarized in Table 2. The pharmacokinetics of cefepime are linear over the range of 500 mg to 2 g intramuscularly and do not vary with respect to treatment duration.
 |
Distribution
The average steady-state volume of distribution of cefepime is 18 (±2) L. The serum protein binding of cefepime is approximately 20% and is independent of its concentration in serum.
Cefepime is excreted in human milk. A nursing infant consuming approximately 1000 mL of human milk per day would receive approximately 0.5 mg of cefepime per day. (See PRECAUTIONS: Nursing Mothers.)
Concentrations of cefepime achieved in specific tissues and body fluids are listed in Table 3.
 |
Data suggest that cefepime does cross the inflamed blood-brain barrier. The clinical relevance of these data is uncertain at this time.
Metabolism and Excretion
Cefepime is metabolized to N-methylpyrrolidine (NMP) which is rapidly converted to the N-oxide (NMP-N-oxide). Urinary recovery of unchanged cefepime accounts for approximately 85% of the administered dose. Less than 1% of the administered dose is recovered from urine as NMP, 6.8% as NMP-N-oxide, and 2.5% as an epimer of cefepime. Because renal excretion is a significant pathway of elimination, patients with renal dysfunction and patients undergoing hemodialysis require dosage adjustment. (See DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION.)
Specific Populations
Renal impairment: Cefepime pharmacokinetics have been investigated in patients with various degrees of renal impairment (n=30). The average half-life in patients requiring hemodialysis was 13.5 (±2.7) hours and in patients requiring continuous peritoneal dialysis was 19 (±2) hours. Cefepime total body clearance decreased proportionally with creatinine clearance in patients with abnormal renal function, which serves as the basis for dosage adjustment recommendations in this group of patients. (See DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION.)
Hepatic impairment: The pharmacokinetics of cefepime were unaltered in patients with hepatic impairment who received a single 1 g dose (n=11).
Geriatric patients: Cefepime pharmacokinetics have been investigated in elderly (65 years of age and older) men (n=12) and women (n=12) whose mean (SD) creatinine clearance was 74 (±15) mL/min. There appeared to be a decrease in cefepime total body clearance as a function of creatinine clearance. Therefore, dosage administration of cefepime in the elderly should be adjusted as appropriate if the patient’s creatinine clearance is 60 mL/min or less. (SeeDOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION.)
Pediatric patients: Cefepime pharmacokinetics have been evaluated in pediatric patients from 2 months to 11 years of age following single and multiple doses on every 8 hours (n=29) and every 12 hours (n=13) schedules. Following a single intravenous dose, total body clearance and the steady-state volume of distribution averaged 3.3 (±1) mL/min/kg and 0.3 (±0.1) L/kg, respectively. The urinary recovery of unchanged cefepime was 60.4 (±30.4)% of the administered dose, and the average renal clearance was 2 (±1.1) mL/min/kg. There were no significant effects of age or gender (25 male vs 17 female) on total body clearance or volume of distribution, corrected for body weight. No accumulation was seen when cefepime was given at 50 mg per kg every 12 hours (n=13), while Cmax, AUC, and t½ were increased about 15% at steady state after 50 mg per kg every 8 hours. The exposure to cefepime following a 50 mg per kg intravenous dose in a pediatric patient is comparable to that in an adult treated with a 2 g intravenous dose. The absolute bioavailability of cefepime after an intramuscular dose of 50 mg per kg was 82.3 (±15)% in eight patients.