Fusidic Acid CAS 6990-06-3

Fusidic acid is also sometimes known as sodium fusidate.
Fusidic acid is an antibiotic. It works by stopping bacteria from growing.
It's used to treat bacterial infections, such as skin infections including cellulitis and impetigo, and eye infections including conjunctivitis (red, itchy eyes).
Fusidic acid is only available on prescription. It comes as a cream, ointment, or eye drops. It's also available with a steroid as a combined cream.
It's also given by injection, as a liquid you swallow, or as tablets, but these are usually only used in hospital.

Fusidic acid is an antibiotic with both hydrophilic and lipophilic properties, so it penetrates very well into the skin, reaching the deep layers of the skin and is present in all layers of skin and subcutaneous tissue. The drug works by preventing the growth of bacteria that cause an infection.
Sodium fusidate is a fusidic acid salt and works by a similar mechanism. Topical fusidic acid is suitable for superficial and deep skin infections. Fusidic acid is indicated for the treatment of skin infections caused by viral or staphylococcal infections, streptococci and other microorganisms sensitive to fusidic acid. Fusidic acid cream or sodium fusidate ointment are antibiotics that work to clear up infections on the surface of the skin quickly, especially in small areas of infection. If the skin infection is more extensive, antibiotic tablets or liquid medication may be indicated.
Skin diseases often treated with topical fusidic acid such as discoid eczema, stasis eczema, seborrheic dermatitis, atopic dermatitis, contact dermatitis, chronic lichen simplex, skin psoriasis, sunburned skin, discoid lupus erythematosus. In addition, topical fusidic acid is also indicated in the treatment of conditions such as impetigo, folliculitis, folliculitis, superficial wounds, fungal diseases caused by Corynebacterium minutissimum, boils, traumatic or postoperative wounds, burns , boils, inflammation of the sweat glands, sores caused by varicose veins, inflammation around the nail and common acne.

In deciding to use a medicine, the risks of taking the medicine must be weighed against the good it will do. This is a decision you and your doctor will make. For this medicine, the following should be considered:

Allergies
Tell your doctor if you have ever had any unusual or allergic reaction to this medicine or any other medicines. Also tell your health care professional if you have any other types of allergies, such as to foods, dyes, preservatives, or animals. For non-prescription products, read the label or package ingredients carefully.

Breast Feeding
There are no adequate studies in women for determining infant risk when using this medication during breastfeeding. Weigh the potential benefits against the potential risks before taking this medication while breastfeeding.

Interactions with Medicines
Although certain medicines should not be used together at all, in other cases two different medicines may be used together even if an interaction might occur. In these cases, your doctor may want to change the dose, or other precautions may be necessary. When you are taking this medicine, it is especially important that your healthcare professional know if you are taking any of the medicines listed below. The following interactions have been selected on the basis of their potential significance and are not necessarily all-inclusive.
Using this medicine with any of the following medicines is usually not recommended, but may be required in some cases. If both medicines are prescribed together, your doctor may change the dose or how often you use one or both of the medicines.
● Atorvastatin
● Cholera Vaccine, Live
● Methotrexate
● Pravastatin
● Ritonavir
● Saquinavir
● Simvastatin

Interactions with Food/Tobacco/Alcohol
Certain medicines should not be used at or around the time of eating food or eating certain types of food since interactions may occur. Using alcohol or tobacco with certain medicines may also cause interactions to occur. Discuss with your healthcare professional the use of your medicine with food, alcohol, or tobacco.

Other Medical Problems
The presence of other medical problems may affect the use of this medicine. Make sure you tell your doctor if you have any other medical problems, especially:
● Liver disease-May be worsened by fusidic acid

Fusidic acid is active in vitro against Staphylococcus aureus, most coagulase-positive staphylococci, Beta-hemolytic streptococci, Corynebacterium species, and most clostridium species.[medical citation needed] Fusidic acid has no known useful activity against enterococci or most Gram-negative bacteria (except Neisseria, Moraxella, Legionella pneumophila, and Bacteroides fragilis).[medical citation needed] Fusidic acid is active in vitro and clinically against Mycobacterium leprae but has only marginal activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
One use of fusidic acid is its activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).Although many strains of MRSA remain sensitive to fusidic acid, there is a low genetic barrier to drug resistance (a single point mutation is all that is required), fusidic acid should never be used on its own to treat serious MRSA infection and should be combined with another antimicrobial such as rifampicin when administering oral or topical dosing regimens approved in Europe, Canada, and elsewhere.[medical citation needed] However, resistance selection is low when pathogens are challenged at high drug exposure.
Topical fusidic acid is occasionally used as a treatment for acne vulgaris. As a treatment for acne, fusidic acid is often partially effective at improving acne symptoms. However, research studies have indicated that fusidic acid is not as highly active against Cutibacterium acnes as many other antibiotics that are commonly used as acne treatments. Fusidic acid is also found in several additional topical skin and eye preparations, although its use for these purposes is controversial.

● Tell all of your health care providers that you take this drug. This includes your doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and dentists.
● Do not use this drug to treat acne, rosacea, or a rash around the mouth.
● Do not use longer than you have been told. A second infection may happen.
● Use care when using on a large part of the skin. Talk with the doctor.
● Use of other skin products while using this drug may cause more irritation.
● Talk with your doctor before you use other drugs or products on your skin. This includes soaps.
● If the patient is a child, use this drug with care. The risk of some side effects may be higher in children.
● This drug may affect growth in children and teens in some cases. They may need regular growth checks. Talk with the doctor.
● Tell your doctor if you are pregnant, plan on getting pregnant, or are breast-feeding. You will need to talk about the benefits and risks to you and the baby.
● If you are breast-feeding, avoid putting this drug on your breast.