Cefdinir and Vomiting: What Users Say

• aub...
• March 29, 2020

Cefdinir "This drug cefdinir makes me feel like I am dying. I was prescribed Omnicef for a severe UTI that traveled to my kidneys. By day two, I am vomiting profusely, I cannot stop having diarrhea, and I genuinely feel like I am hallucinating and dying. I want to stop taking this medicine, but I cannot deal with the pain of UTIs. I’m lost. Please say no to this medication and stay away at all costs."

• Kee...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 8, 2019

For Middle Ear Infections "I should have reviewed this terrible medication, cefdinir, months ago. I know I will never take this medication again. I have never had any reaction to any other antibiotics before. Healthy 50-year-old. I tend to resist new medications just because of reading side effects. I did not check this prior to taking it. I was prescribed this for an ear infection. I did not research this medication before because I thought it must have only happened to me, but now my grandson was prescribed this as well, and I needed to see if anyone else had my experience. Too many reviews with similar experiences. I was able to take it nine days until excessive diarrhea, vomiting profusely, temperature, and abdominal cramps. Four days clear liquids, five days of the BRAT (Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast) diet, two trips to the ER. Bottom line, destroys the good bacteria inside you, and the bad bacteria takes over. Intense stomach pain lasted 14 days. I hope this review helps someone before they start taking it. Stick with the basic antibiotics."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 10, 2014

For Sinusitis "Been taking this for five days. The pressure in my sinus is lessening, and my fever is gone, but mucus production has increased, and so now my cough is worse. Does this mean it's not working? The best way I've found to avoid the adverse digestive effects (vomiting, etc.) is to take a strong probiotic to replenish what the antibiotic kills. You can ask your doctor for a prescription-strength probiotic (they prescribe them for patients with ulcerative colitis) or find them in pill or drink form at a health food store."

• cjm...
• February 14, 2018

For Sinusitis "1.5 hours after the first dose. Severe stomach pain, projectile vomiting, and watery diarrhea for 6 hours, severe chills and sweating, panic, hyperventilating. I am 48 and not new to vomiting, etc.! This was unlike any other episode. Hospitalized for 3 days! Doctor brushed it off as flu! Tried a dose last night for a new sinus infection, and severe cramping and vomiting started within 3 hours of 1 dose! I will refuse this medication in the future!"

• Nev...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 12, 2016

For Sinusitis "I had a horrible experience on cefdinir. I was prescribed it for sinusitis, 300 mg twice per day for 10 days. Two hours after the first dose, I started throwing up constantly. After about 3 hours of throwing up, I was feeling weak and dizzy and was in a lot of pain. I went to the ER, and they started IV fluids for severe dehydration. That's when the diarrhea started. Worst diarrhea of my life (I have IBS, so I've had some pretty bad diarrhea). After the fluids, Zofran, and diluted Bentyl, the throwing up finally stopped. The ER doc said it was because of the cefdinir. I never took a second dose. I would have rather just let the sinusitis play itself out than deal with these side effects from cefdinir. I'll never take it again."

• Anonymous
• November 6, 2010

Cefdinir for Middle Ear Infections "My daughter, who was 14 months at the time, had a severe reaction to this medication after being prescribed for a 3rd ear infection in a year. She actually got worse and had severe side effects (aside from the gastrointestinal as mentioned by others), including vomiting, continued high fever, and by the end of the second day - hives. I list it as a drug allergy now on all her medical paperwork."

• Top...
• November 7, 2015

For Sinusitis "I had taken this drug in the past, it made me vomit violently and diarrhea. When it was prescribed for me recently, I had forgotten that this was the drug that made me so sick. I took one capsule, and within 3 hours, was violently ill: massive diarrhea and vomiting. I was alone and could not even get to my phone for help. I lay on the floor of my shower for hours, having episode after episode. It is nearly 24 hours after taking it, and I am in such a weakened state I will not be getting out of bed. I feel I probably should have called 911 and gone to the hospital, I still am so dehydrated. This is an evil drug!"

• Vtc...
• March 8, 2016

For Sinusitis "Diarrhea after day 2, I stopped after the 7th day when I started vomiting. By then, the sinus infection was twice as bad. This med added bronchial infection, sneezing, itchy eyes, and nose. I feel like the doctor prescribed it to watch me like a guinea pig. The doctor’s office just said, well, those are the side effects."

• Anonymous
• February 6, 2018

For Sinusitis "It was prescribed for a possible sinus infection. Knowing what I know now, I don't know why such a strong med was prescribed. I have taken things like amoxicillin in the past with no bad side effects. In addition to seeing no change in my symptoms, by the night of day 6 of 10 that I was supposed to take the drug, I was miserable. Shaking chills, dizziness, watery diarrhea, nausea with some vomiting. I actually wished that I could have vomited more because I felt so terribly nauseated. Now, on the morning after, still feeling nausea and dealing with diarrhea. Also headache. I hope and pray that the drug and its effects totally leave my body soon. I will never take cefdinir again. By the way, I did take the drug as prescribed and took probiotics."

• jul...
• December 31, 2015

For Sinusitis "I saw my doctor for a bad sinus infection. He prescribed cefdinir. I took the first one and within a short while was violently vomiting, sweating profusely, very weak. Called 911 to help get me off the floor into a chair to be wheeled to the car. Went to the emergency room. The ER doctor said nausea and vomiting were due to the serious upper respiratory infection, but I see here it may have been the cefdinir. If any of the future doses make me sick, I'm going to ask for a different antibiotic."

• Cia...
• September 22, 2016

For Sinusitis "My 5-year-old daughter was given this medication for sinusitis. 30 minutes after her first dose, she started trembling. We didn't know what was going on. Then suddenly, she started vomiting. We decided it was a reaction to cefdinir. Very scary. Threw the rest of it away."

• Jef...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 20, 2021

For Middle Ear Infections "Healthy 60-year-old on no medications. Prescribed for inner ear infection. Within 25 minutes of taking this medication, I was profusely vomiting and had severe diarrhea, to the point I was limp on the bathroom floor, with my wife about to dial 911. I had another prescription called in the next day. Major ringing in my ears and mild vertigo for 3 days. I will NEVER take this again, nor recommend it to anyone!!"

• Lil...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 4, 2019

For Bronchitis "I took this antibiotic twice daily for acute bronchitis and a sinus infection. After 2 days of taking it, I started to have stomach discomfort and dizziness. I didn't realize at the time it could be because of the antibiotic. I started waking out of my sleep nauseous and vomiting for hours. I stopped taking it after 6 days, and more than two weeks later, I'm still dealing with the impact this had on my stomach. I'm unable to sleep, and I've missed work due to this. Now I'm taking multiple medications to cope with my stomach issues daily and still waiting to recover."

• mai...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 16, 2020

For Sinusitis "Bad cold turned to sinusitis. Up through day 6 of cefdinir, no problem. Morning of day 7 woke up a little queasy, called doctor who said to stick with it, but by evening I was vomiting with loose stool. Did not take evening dose, called Dr. next day (still queasy). Switched to doxycycline today. It was in my record that I had taken cefdinir before--apparently with no problem. As to sinus infection, can't say how effective. Mucus clear, but still stuffed up and run-down feeling."

• C-F...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 13, 2022

For Sinusitis "I have S.V.T. (afib) and am allergic to penicillin. So, I was prescribed cefdinir. The pharmacist strongly suggested I take it with a meal, so I waited until lunch to take it, then the 9-hour drive home. By the time we got home, I felt like I had developed the flu and didn't give it a second thought. The next two days were filled with nausea, heavy diarrhea, vomiting, intense pressure in my ears and face, the worst sinus swelling and overproduction of mucus I've ever had, intense anxiety, irregular heartbeat, which set off SVT episodes, and inability to eat (nausea, vomiting, and difficulty swallowing with the amount of pressure in my head and throat), which created a cycle of intensifying adverse effects. I went to the ER last night, got a steroid shot, 5 days of prednisone, and was told to continue. Felt better, came home, took cefdinir, and it all started over. Even the shot wasn't helping. I'm almost 24 hours after stopping and still having heart episodes. Others are coming and going."

• nan...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 10, 2022

For Bronchitis "65-year-old female here. I was given a ten-day dose of (300 mg 2x per day) cefdinir for acute bacterial bronchitis. Pros: On day 4, my symptoms started to improve remarkably. Cons: On day 7, I started to experience horrible side effects: vomiting, headache, fever, and the worst diarrhea I've ever had. I was convinced I had C. diff. I stopped the medication, and the side effects resolved in 3 days. Takeaway: This antibiotic worked for me! My advice to others considering this med is to buckle up and prepare for the side effects. Also, take a good probiotic in between doses and avoid dairy."

• Ren...
• May 25, 2016

For Sinusitis "I have been taking this medicine for sinusitis (300 mg twice a day), or however you spell it. It has only been 1 day, so I have only taken it twice, spaced out between 12 hours. One at 7:18 am and one at 7:18 pm. I have now been awake since 4 am with an upset stomach, stomach gurgling, and my bowels are slowly turning into diarrhea. I only made a bowel movement once while taking this so far, and I can tell it is about to go down if I keep taking it :( (I am normally very constipated). As far as for my sinusitis, it has seemed to improve my sore, itchy throat a little. I guess I should stick it out and drink plenty of water to see how I feel. I just do not want to vomit. :("

• Alg...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 4, 2018

"I’m a nurse that got exposed to meningitis at work. Went to the urgent care with the worst sore throat of my life and a fever of 100.7. After 1st dose of cefdinir and prednisone 20 mg, I felt immediate relief, but after the 2nd dose, I became so nauseous that I vomited. Just reached out to my primary MD for nausea med since I have 6 more days of this antibiotic. Hope this will take care of the unpleasant side effect."

• Rof...
• March 28, 2017

For Bronchitis "Was prescribed cefdinir 300 mg 2x daily for 10 days. I even took 30 billion culture probiotics daily to prevent this side effect. Made it to day 5 and began experiencing horrible abdominal pain. A few hours later, diarrhea started. I even vomited 6 times on top of it. I obviously stopped taking it, and day 2, the abdominal pain is about half of what it was. Still have very uncomfortable diarrhea every 1-2 hours... Sleeping 18 hours a day and very weak. Stay away from this antibiotic. I agree it should be prescribed very carefully or just taken off the market completely. The loss of work this is causing has been horrible, and if terminated because of this, I plan on taking action any extent I can."

• 7...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 18, 2017

For Middle Ear Infections "Son took this, and it worked well until day 8. He was supposed to do a 10-day course. Then he broke out in a horrible rash: itching, burning, throat swelling, vomiting. Highly allergic to this drug. Currently taking 5 days of steroids and back-to-back Benadryl doses. Complains often of aggressive itch and burning. Seek a doctor immediately if your child breaks out."

• Che...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 3, 2017

For Sinusitis "I was prescribed on a Tuesday to take cefdinir for a sinus infection (alongside a steroid, which I only took for a day). Tuesday went fine, I felt better. Wed PM before my fourth dosage, I had intense stomach pain (I can normally handle stomach pain/cramps) and was advised to eat something. Felt better and took my 4th pill. Woke up around 3 am Thursday, and I could taste the pill in my mouth (indigestion/reflux). Pushed it off, went to sleep, and woke up an hour later, and I thought I was dying on the toilet. Stomach pain, diarrhea, and vomiting (at the same time) and this weird finger cramp where I couldn’t move my fingers, along with panic/shallow breathing. This lasted off and on for almost two hours (mostly diarrhea), and I was too scared to finish the RX."

• Con...
• May 30, 2017

For Strep Throat "My daughter had a non-IGE-mediated allergic reaction to this medication in Sept 2016 and in May 2017. It caused her to have a high fever and chills, temps of 104.6 for 5 days in a row and stomach pain behind her belly button. She threw up one morning from the fever."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 22, 2023

For Tonsillitis/Pharyngitis "I’m taking it for tonsillitis, and my symptoms have begun to improve after 3 doses, but boy, did it come with a cost. To be fair, I was also prescribed prednisone, so that is probably also helping. After I took the second dose, I felt nauseous and ended up vomiting. It also gave me a migraine that lasted all night. I’ve been told by doctors before that I have an “iron stomach” as I’ve been on long doses of antibiotics before, such as clindamycin, without any side effects, but the second dose of cefdinir took me out! I was even taking probiotics too. Be warned!"

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 3, 2023

Cefdinir "Great drug, one dose, and your UTI is pretty much gone, but so is all the other bacteria you need. This medication made me so violently ill. Vomiting, watery diarrhea, and stomach cramping. Had to pull over while driving to vomit (never had to do that before in my life, not even when I was pregnant). Thankfully, it has a short duration of activity in the body, so by the next day, I was okay. But this went straight into the garbage can after that."

• D33...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 6, 2022

"For a UTI, took 2/day x 10 days as prescribed and I do not plan on taking this again. It caused nausea with vomiting most mornings (not pregnant at my age), then colitis with bad diarrhea! With all of the diarrhea I will be blessed to not get another UTI, which would defeat the purpose of taking it to begin with…"