Amoxicillin for Pneumonia: Mechanism of Action, Pharmacokinetics, and Side Effects

Bacterial pneumonia is a lung disorder affected by bacterial infection. Amoxicillin is one of the effective medications from the penicillin group of medication that helps to relieve from such disorders. Learn about the mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics, and side effects of Amoxicillin for Pneumonia.

AMOXICILLIN FOR
PNEUMONIA
Name of the student:
Name of the incident:
Author note:

 Bacterial
pneumonia can
be defined as the
common lung
infection where
the air sacks of
the lungs
become inflame
(Nascimento-
Carvalho et al.,
2017).
Bacterial infection

 Streptococcus
pneumonia- enter
the lungs through
inhalation &
bloodstream
 Haemophilus
influenza- infects
upper respiratory
tract (Xiang et al.,
2016).
Microorganism that causes the disorder

 Microorganisms form pores to
invade alveoli sacs
 Invasion trigger immune
response, stimulate neutrophils
and WBCs
 Engulfing bacteria and release
of cytokines
 Symptoms - fever, child and
fatigue (Biedenbach et al.,
2015)
 Impairment of oxygen transport
due to fluid accumulation in
alveoli
 Mucus production and
exchange of gases (Barrera et
al., 2016)
Pathophysiology and mechanism

 Amoxicillin- penicillin group,
derivative of ampicillin
 Widely used antibiotic (β-
lactam antibiotic)
 Treatment for bacterial
pneumonia
 It acts as bactericidal
agent- prevents bacterial
growth
 Side effects- diarrhea, tooth
discoloration and
candidiasis (Rajapakse et
al., 2016).
Drug- Amoxicillin

 Amoxicillin-β-lactam
antibiotic= inhibit the cross
linkage between the linear
peptidoglycan polymer
chains
 Prevents cell wall formation
of Gram positive and
negative bacteria
 Impaired bacterial wall
synthesis
 Leading to cell lysis-
autolytic enzymes/autolysins
 Working as autolysin
inhibitor (Tshefu et al., 2015)
Mechanism of action

Amoxicillin
• No interaction with food
• Distributed in breast milk
• Capability to cross the placenta
• Half-life is seen to be 61.3 minutes
• Excreted by kidney and hepatic metabolism
• Excretion may get delayed by the
concomitant administration of the
probenecid
• (Wayne et al., 2017)
Pharmacokinetics

 Amoxicillin can be taken as the dry tablet orally
as well as a chewable tablet, a capsule, a
suspension or a liquid preparation and as drops
for children
 Taken either twice a day or in every 12 hours
 Can be taken thrice a day at every 8 hours
 Doses should not be missed
 If missed should not be taken two at a time for
compensating mixed dose
 Missing dose- recurrence of the infection
(Rajapakse et al., 2016).
Route of administration

 Check for allergies before administration
 Other drug interactions
 Reduce effectiveness of the birth control pills
 Need precautions when administering patients with
1. Asthma, hay fever,
2. kidney diseases,
3. mononucleosis,
4. phenylketonuria.
Anaphylactic reactions-
 difficulty in breathing
 chest tightness, itchiness,
 rash as well as swelling of throat and face,
 stomach upset, vomiting and diarrhea.
 rashes, seizures, pale skin, fatigue,
 yellowing of the eyes or skin or dark colored or bloody urine (Tshefu et al.,
2015)
Side effects/ precautions

 Important in nursing profession- primary
and secondary healthcare services
 Decrease health care costs
 Prevent community acquired infection
 Ease of monitoring due to known risk
factors
 Risks factors- people with age over 65 or
below 2
 chronic medical conditions- lung disease,
alcohol and smoking issues, neurological
problems and many others
Relevance to practice

 Bacterial pneumonia is a lung disorder
affected by bacterial infection
 Amoxicillin is one of the effective
medications from penicillin group of
medication that helps to relive from
such disorders.
Conclusion

Barrera, C. M., Mykietiuk, A., Metev, H., Nitu, M. F., Karimjee, N., Doreski, P. A., ... & Van Rensburg, D. J. (2016).
Efficacy and safety of oral solithromycin versus oral moxifloxacin for treatment of community-acquired bacterial
pneumonia: a global, double-blind, multicentre, randomised, active-controlled, non-inferiority trial (SOLITAIRE-
ORAL). The Lancet Infectious Diseases, 16(4), 421-430.
Biedenbach, D. J., Farrell, D. J., Sader, H. S., & Jones, R. N. (2015). Antimicrobial Activity of a New Fluoroketolide
Solithromycin (CEM-101) Tested Against Fastidious Gram-negative Community-Acquired Bacterial Pneumonia
Pathogens.
Nascimento-Carvalho, C. M., Xavier-Souza, G., Vilas-Boas, A. L., Fontoura, M. S. H., Barral, A., Puolakkainen, M., ...
& PNEUMOPAC-Efficacy Study Group. (2017). Evolution of acute infection with atypical bacteria in a prospective
cohort of children with community-acquired pneumonia receiving amoxicillin. Journal of Antimicrobial
Chemotherapy, 72(8), 2378-2384.
Rajapakse, N. S., Vayalumkal, J. V., Vanderkooi, O. G., Ricketson, L. J., & Kellner, J. D. (2016). Time to reconsider
routine high-dose amoxicillin for community-acquired pneumonia in all Canadian children. Paediatrics & child
health, 21(2), 65-66.
Tshefu, A., Lokangaka, A., Ngaima, S., Engmann, C., Esamai, F., Gisore, P., ... & Wammanda, R. D. (2015). Oral
amoxicillin compared with injectable procaine benzylpenicillin plus gentamicin for treatment of neonates and
young infants with fast breathing when referral is not possible: a randomised, open-label, equivalence trial. The
Lancet, 385(9979), 1758-1766.
Wayne, A., Davis, M., Sinnott, V. B., & Bracker, K. (2017). Outcomes in dogs with uncomplicated, presumptive
bacterial pneumonia treated with short or long course antibiotics. The Canadian Veterinary Journal, 58(6), 610.
Xiang, Y., Wang, Z. H., Cai, P., & Zhang, Z. (2016). Effect of β-lactamase detection on reducing the incidence of
antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children with severe bacterial pneumonia. Zhongguo dang dai er ke za zhi=
Chinese journal of contemporary pediatrics, 18(10), 1001-1004.
References