Oritavancin

Oritavancin is a prescription medication used to treat skin and skin structure infections in adults. Oritavancin belongs to a group of drugs called glycopeptide antibiotics. These work by killing certain bacteria that cause infections.

This medication is available in an injectable form to be given directly into a vein (IV) by a healthcare professional.

Common side effects of oritavancin include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, and infusion site pain and redness.

Oritavancin can also cause dizziness. Do not drive or operate heavy machinery until you know how oritavancin affects you.

Oritavancin is a prescription medication used to treat skin and skin structure infections in adults caused by susceptible Gram-positive bacteria.  

This medication may be prescribed for other uses. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

Oritavancin may be found in some form under the following brand names:

• Orbactiv

Serious side effects have been reported with oritavancin. See the “Oritavancin Precautions” section.

Common side effects of oritavancin include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, and infusion site pain and redness.

This is not a complete list of oritavancin side effects. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away.

Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Especially tell your doctor if you take warfarin (Coumadin).

This is not a complete list of oritavancin drug interactions. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

Serious side effects have been reported with oritavancin including the following:

• headache
• vomiting
• skin abscesses on the limbs
• subcutaneous abscesses
• diarrhea
• cellulitis
• osteomyelitis
• increased heart rate

Oritavancin can cause dizziness. Do not drive or operate heavy machinery until you know how oritavancin affects you.

Do not take oritavancin if you:

• are allergic to oritavancin or to any of its ingredients

Heparin should not be administered within 48 hours after oritavancin administration.

Medications can interact with certain foods. In some cases, this may be harmful and your doctor may advise you to avoid certain foods. In the case of oritavancin, there are no specific foods that you must exclude from your diet when receiving this medication.

Before taking oritavancin, tell your doctor about all of your medical conditions. Especially tell your doctor if you:

• are allergic to oritavancin or to any of its ingredients
• are allergic to other glycopeptide antibacterials, including vancomycin (Vancocin), telavancin (Vibativ), or dalbavancin (Dalvance)
• have or have had condition B
• have liver problems
• have heart problems
• are pregnant or breastfeeding

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.

Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.

The FDA categorizes medications based on safety for use during pregnancy. Five categories - A, B, C, D, and X, are used to classify the possible risks to an unborn baby when a medication is taken during pregnancy.

Oritavancin falls into category C. There are no well-controlled studies that have been done in pregnant women. Oritavancin should be used during pregnancy only if the possible benefit outweighs the possible risk to the unborn baby.

Tell your doctor if you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed.

It is not known if oritavancin crosses into human milk. Because many medications can cross into human milk and because of the possibility for serious adverse reactions in nursing infants with use of this medication, a choice should be made whether to stop nursing or stop the use of this medication. Your doctor and you will decide if the benefits outweigh the risk of using oritavancin.

Take oritavancin exactly as prescribed.

This medication is available in an injectable form to be given directly into a vein (IV) by a healthcare professional.

This medication is available in an injectable form to be given directly into a vein (IV) by a healthcare professional.

The dose your doctor recommends may be based on the following:

• the condition being treated
• your age

The recommended dose of oritavancin for the treatment of skin and skin structure infections is 1200 mg infused intravenously over 3 hours.

If you take too much oritavancin, call your healthcare provider or local Poison Control Center, or seek emergency medical attention right away.

If oritavancin is administered by a healthcare provider in a medical setting, it is unlikely that an overdose will occur. However, if overdose is suspected, seek emergency medical attention.

This medication is only for administration in a healthcare setting.