Clindamycin Equity 150 mg Capsules

Clindamycin Equity belongs to a group called antibiotics. Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections. Clindamycin Equity are used to treat certain serious bacterial infections.

Do not take Clindamycin Equity :

• If you are hypersensitive (allergic) to clindamycin or any of the other ingredients of Clindamycin Equity (listed in section 6).
• If you have had a previous reaction to lincomycin or doxorubicin.
• If you have existing diarrhoea or have ever suffered from problems with your stomach or intestines like colitis.
• If you are pregnant or breastfeeding your baby.

Warnings and precautions

Take special care with Clindamycin Equity :

• If you have diarrhoea or usually get diarrhoea when you take antibiotics or have ever suffered from problems with your stomach or intestines. Tell your doctor immediately if you develop diarrhoea or bloody diarrhoea so that the treatment can be stopped.
• If you suffer from problems with your kidneys or liver.
• If you suffer from asthma, eczema or hayfever.
• If you develop any severe skin reactions or hypersensitivity to Clindamycin Equity.

Long term use of Clindamycin Equity can make you more likely to get other infections (super-infection) that do not respond to Clindamycin Equity treatment.

Other medicines and Clindamycin Equity

Always tell your healthcare provider if you are taking any other medicine. (This includes all complementary or traditional medicines.) Tell your doctor if you are taking any of the following medicines:

• Muscle relaxants used for operations (neuromuscular blockers).
• Oral contraceptive pills. You should use extra contraception such as condoms whilst taking Clindamycin Equity and for seven days after taking Clindamycin Equity.
• Warfarin or similar medicines – used to thin the blood. You may be more likely to have a bleed. Your doctor may need to take regular blood tests to check how well your blood can clot.
• CYP3A4 or CYP3A5 inducers like rifampicin may impact effectiveness of the medicine.
• Erythromycin (an antibiotic that treat certain bacterial infections).

Do not share medicines prescribed for you with any other person. Always take Clindamycin Equity exactly as your doctor or pharmacist has told you. Check with your doctor or pharmacist if you are not sure.

The usual dose for adults is:

• For mild to moderately severe infections: 150 mg (1 capsule) every six hours
• Severe infections: up to 450 mg (3 capsules) every six hours

The usual dose for children is:

• Mild infections: 8 – 12 mg/kg/day divided in 3 or 4 equal doses
• Moderately severe infections: 13 – 16 mg/kg/day divided in 3 or 4 equal doses
• Severe infections: 17 – 25 mg/kg/day divided in 3 or 4 equal doses

Your doctor will tell you how long treatment with Clindamycin Equity will last. Do not stop treatment early because the infection may get worse and the bacteria may become resistant to antibiotic treatment given in the future.

If you have the impression that the effect of Clindamycin Equity is too strong or too weak, tell your doctor or pharmacist.

Take Clindamycin Equity with a full glass of water to avoid irritation of the oesophagus (the tube that connects the throat to the stomach).

If you take more Clindamycin Equity than you should

In the event of over dosage, consult your doctor or pharmacist. If neither is available, contact the nearest hospital or poison centre.

If you forget to take Clindamycin Equity

Do not take a double dose to make up for forgotten individual doses.

If you stop taking Clindamycin Equity

If you stop taking the medicine too soon your infection may come back again or get worse. (See ‘How to take Clindamycin Equity’).

Clindamycin Equity can have side effects. Not all side effects reported for Clindamycin Equity are included in this leaflet. Should your general health worsen or if you experience any untoward effects while taking Clindamycin Equity, please consult your healthcare provider for advice.

If any of the following happens, stop taking Clindamycin Equity and tell your doctor immediately or go to the casualty department at your nearest hospital:

• severe, persistent or bloody diarrhoea (which may be associated with stomach pain or fever). This is a side effect which may occur during or after completing treatment with antibiotics and can be a sign of serious bowel inflammation or infection,
• signs of severe allergic reactions such as swelling of the hands, feet, ankles, face, lips and mouth or throat, which may cause difficulty in swallowing or breathing, fainting, rash or itching (especially affecting the whole body),
• a widespread rash with blistering and peeling of large areas of skin, redness, red skin rash with small pus-containing blisters, fever, cough, feeling unwell and swelling of the gums, tongue, lips, nose, eyes, genitals or lymph nodes,
• yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice).

These are all very serious side effects. If you have them, you may have had a serious reaction to Clindamycin Equity. You may need urgent medical attention or hospitalisation.

Tell your doctor if you notice any of the following:

Frequent:

• pain in the stomach / abdomen
• diarrhoea
• abnormal liver function tests (poor liver function)
• rash, itchiness of the skin
• increased number of certain white blood cells that fight disease

Less frequent:

• feeling sick (nausea) or being sick (vomiting)
• hives (urticaria)
• impaired sense of taste (dysgeusia)

Unknown frequency:

• infection inside and around the vagina
• inflammation of the large intestine which causes abdominal pain, fever or diarrhoea due to infection by Clostridium difficile
• effects on your blood system: reduced numbers of blood cells which may cause bruising or bleeding or weaken the immune system
• inflammation of the lining of the oesophagus (gullet), open sores or lesions in the lining of the oesophagus (gullet)
• red or scaly skin (exfoliative dermatitis), red measles-like rash (rash morbilliform), itching

If you notice any side effects not mentioned in this leaflet, please inform your doctor or pharmacist.

Reporting of side effects

If you get side effects, talk to your doctor, pharmacist or nurse. You can also report side effects to SAHPRA via the “6.04 Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting Form”, found online under SAHPRA’s publications: https://www.sahpra.org.za/Publications/Index/8. By reporting side effects, you can help provide more information on the safety of Clindamycin Equity.

Store all medicines out of reach of children.

Store at or below 30 °C. Keep the capsules in the blister in the outer carton until required for use. Do not use after the expiry date on the box. Return all unused medicine to your pharmacist. Do not dispose of unused medicine in drains or sewerage systems (e.g. toilets).