The FDA approved a new indication for the previously FDA-approved drug, Zerbaxa (ceftolozane and tazobactam) for the treatment of hospital-acquired bacterial pneumonia and ventilator-associated bacterial pneumonia (HABP/VABP) in patients 18 years and older. The FDA initially approved Zerbaxa in 2014 to treat complicated intra-abdominal infections and for complicated urinary tract infections.
HABP/VABP occur in patients in hospitals or other healthcare facilities and can be caused by a variety of bacteria. According to the CDC, HABP and VABP are currently the second most common type of hospital-acquired infection in the U.S. and are a significant issue in patients in the intensive care unit (ICU).
The safety and efficacy of Zerbaxa for the treatment of HABP/VABP, administered via injection, was demonstrated in a multinational, double-blind study that compared Zerbaxa to another antibacterial drug in 726 adult patients hospitalized with HABP/VABP. The study showed that mortality and cure rates were similar between Zerbaxa and the comparator treatment.
The most common adverse reactions observed in the HABP/VABP trial among patients treated with Zerbaxa were elevated liver enzyme levels, renal impairment or failure, and diarrhea. Zerbaxa should not be used in patients with known serious hypersensitivity to components of Zerbaxa, as well as hypersensitivity to piperacillin/tazobactam or other members of the beta lactam class of antibacterial drugs.
Zerbaxa received FDA’s Qualified Infectious Disease Product (QIDP) designation for the treatment of HABP/VABP. The QIDP designation is given to antibacterial and antifungal drug products intended to treat serious or life-threatening infections under the Generating Antibiotic Incentives Now (GAIN) title of the FDA Safety and Innovation Act.
