piperacillin-tazobactam
Meaning of piperacillin-tazobactam: Piperacillin-tazobactam is a broad-spectrum antibiotic combination used to treat serious bacterial infections, including in people whose immune systems are weakened.
Definition of piperacillin-tazobactam
Piperacillin-tazobactam is a combination antibiotic medication used to treat a range of serious bacterial infections, including infections of the abdomen, lungs, skin, and bloodstream. It combines two components that work together, piperacillin, a penicillin-type antibiotic, and tazobactam, which blocks an enzyme that some bacteria use to resist penicillin-type drugs.
By combining these two components, the medication remains effective against certain bacteria that would otherwise be able to break down piperacillin alone, extending the range of bacteria the combination can treat compared with piperacillin by itself. It is given by intravenous infusion, typically in a hospital setting for infections serious enough to require this route.
Piperacillin-tazobactam is used broadly across medicine for serious infections and is used with particular attention in people whose immune systems are weakened, including some people undergoing cancer treatment, since a weakened immune system raises the stakes of an infection that might otherwise be more easily controlled.
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Used in a sentence
Piperacillin-tazobactam was started intravenously for the patient's suspected abdominal infection.
Good to know
Tazobactam does not treat infection on its own but instead protects piperacillin from being broken down by certain bacterial enzymes, which is why the two components are given together rather than as separate treatments.