Prescription medicine
Cefoxitin First approved as Mefoxin
Cefoxitin (Mefoxin) is a prescription medicine with an FDA approval on record since 1978. FDA's NDC Directory lists it from 5 generic labelers.
- Generic listed
Check it at the source: the cefoxitin FDA label on DailyMed (effective April 11, 2024, Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc.); the NDA 50517 record on Drugs@FDA; every cefoxitin label on DailyMed.
Highlights of the record
FDA label of April 11, 2024; NDC Directory, Drugs@FDA and Orange Book, October 8, 2026
Used for
From the label: indications and usageTreatment Cefoxitin for Injection, USP is indicated for the treatment of serious infections caused by susceptible strains of the designated microorganisms in the diseases listed below.
Forms and strengths
- 1 g
- 2 g
- 10 g
- 100 g
- 1 g/50ml
- 2 g/50ml
Injection (powder) for solution; powder for solution; injection (solution).
On the market
- Earliest approval on file
- October 18, 1978 Mefoxin, Pharmobedient; Drugs@FDA’s file, where older or withdrawn approvals can be missing
- Generic approvals
- 15 first January 8, 1987; 7 with a marketed status in Drugs@FDA
- Labelers listed (NDC)
- 6 of which 5 under generic applications, 1 under brand applications, repackagers included
Supply and safety
- Pharmacy cost (NADAC)
- Not in the survey
- Shortage (FDA)
- No current entry
- Recalls by its makers (FDA)
- 1 since 2013 1 Class I among all firms' recalls; latest November 21, 2013; 1 more by firms not listed as its makers
- FAERS reports
- 1,373 through July 30, 2026
What is cefoxitin used for?
From the label: indications and usageTreatment Cefoxitin for Injection, USP is indicated for the treatment of serious infections caused by susceptible strains of the designated microorganisms in the diseases listed below. (1) Lower respiratory tract infections, including pneumonia and lung abscess, caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, other streptococci (excluding enterococci, e.g., Enterococcus faecalis [formerly Streptococcus faecalis ]), Staphylococcus aureus (including penicillinase-producing strains), Escherichia coli, Klebsiella species, Haemophilus influenzae, and Bacteroides species. […]
Conditions named in the indications of cefoxitin's FDA labels, with every medicine labeled for each:
From other cefoxitin labelsBacterial infections: INDICATIONS AND USAGE Treatment Cefoxitin for Injection, USP is indicated for the treatment of serious infections caused by susceptible strains of the designated microorganisms in the diseases listed below. …
Urinary tract infections: Urinary tract infections ( 1.2 );
FDA pharmacologic class: Cephalosporin Antibacterial.
Source: FDA drug label (Cefoxitin), Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., effective April 11, 2024 (SPL set d2c449b9-5624-4166-95b1-d7813b3d0445), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
Is there a generic for cefoxitin (Mefoxin)?
The FDA approved the first generic cefoxitin on January 8, 1987. 15 generic applications are approved; 7 of them carry a current (not discontinued) marketing status in Drugs@FDA; that status is not evidence that the generic is on sale.
FDA's NDC Directory lists cefoxitin from 5 labelers under a generic (ANDA) application and from 1 brand labeler. A listing means the company has registered the product for sale; it does not show that every pharmacy stocks it.
- 1978 earliest approval on file
- 1987 first generic approved
- red ticks recalls
Source: Drugs@FDA, FDA NDC Directory and the Orange Book (openFDA bulk files, October 8, 2026)
Has cefoxitin been recalled?
The FDA's Enforcement Report lists 2 recalls naming cefoxitin since 2013: 1 Class I (the most serious), 1 Class II, 0 Class III; 0 still ongoing. 1 of them is by a firm that FDA's NDC Directory does not list as a maker of cefoxitin and that holds no application for it in Drugs@FDA, such as compounding pharmacies or bulk-ingredient suppliers; the recall notice names the product recalled. A recall names products and lots, not every product of the medicine.
| Started | Class | Company | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| December 27, 2022 | Class II | Sentara Infusion Services not a listed maker | Lack of sterility assurance |
| November 21, 2013 | Class I | B. Braun Medical Inc | Presence of Particulate Matter: B. Braun Medical Inc. is recalling several injectable products due to visible particulate matter found in reserve sample units. |
Source: FDA Enforcement Report (drug recalls) via openFDA, through October 8, 2026
What does the cefoxitin label say about other medicines?
The cefoxitin label names 1 other medicine in its interaction, contraindication or warning sections. The sentences are the labels' own; a label lists what its studies and reports found, not every interaction.
| Medicine named | Section | What the label says |
|---|---|---|
| Epinephrine | warnings | SERIOUS HYPERSENSITIVITY REACTIONS MAY REQUIRE EPINEPHRINE AND OTHER EMERGENCY MEASURES. |
Source: FDA drug label (Cefoxitin), Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., effective April 11, 2024 (SPL set d2c449b9-5624-4166-95b1-d7813b3d0445), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
What do FAERS reports show for cefoxitin?
The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System holds 1,373 reports that list cefoxitin among the medicines taken, through July 30, 2026, each a report of something that happened, not proof the medicine caused it; 126 are coded as a death and 541 as a hospital stay. Counts follow how widely a medicine is used and watched, and they are not a measure of how risky it is.
Reports received each year
The most reported reactions
Source: FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) via openFDA, reports through July 30, 2026
What else is labeled for the same conditions as cefoxitin?
27 other medicines are given the same way (intravenous) and in the same FDA class as cefoxitin or labeled mainly for the same use (bacterial infections), the same class first. Bacterial infections lists all 51 medicines labeled for it, by any route. The first 8 are below. They are listed as records, not as substitutes: whether one can replace another is a prescriber's decision.
| Medicine | Shared indication | Generic labelers (intravenous) | Pharmacy cost | Shortage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cefazolin | Urinary tract infections | 7 labelers | $1.07 per vial 1 g vial | No current entry |
| Cefepime | Urinary tract infections | 8 labelers | n/a | A presentation being discontinued |
| Ceftriaxone | Bacterial infections, Urinary tract infections | 7 labelers | $1.44 per vial 1 g vial | No current entry |
| Cefuroxime | Bacterial infections, Urinary tract infections | 2 labelers | n/a | No current entry |
| Ceftazidime | Bacterial infections | 3 labelers | $3.70 per vial 1 g vial | A presentation being discontinued |
| Avibactam and ceftazidime | Urinary tract infections | none listed | n/a | No current entry |
| Cefepime and zidebactam | Urinary tract infections | none listed | n/a | No current entry |
| Cefiderocol | Urinary tract infections | none listed | n/a | No current entry |
Source: FDA drug labels (indications), NDC Directory, NADAC of October 7, 2026, FDA shortages (October 8, 2026)
How does cefoxitin compare with medicines for the same use?
3 side-by-side pages set cefoxitin beside a medicine whose label shares a use: approvals, generics, pharmacy cost, warnings and supply.
What next?
- Alternatives to cefoxitin
- 27 medicines for the same use
- Other cephalosporins
- the pharmacologic class, with prices and generics
- Cefoxitin side effects
- the label's list beside FAERS reports
- Check an interaction
- what two or more labels say about each other