Prescription medication · Lincosamide Antibiotic
clindamycin
Also sold as Cleocin. This medicine treats acne.
Data updated 2026-05-15
- 27,449
- FDA reportsModerately reported
- 2
- InteractionsFew interactions
- 99% less
- Generic vs brandHuge savings
- In shortage
- FDA status
What the data shows
clindamycin (Cleocin) is a prescription Lincosamide Antibiotic, reported at a middle-of-the-pack volume (27,449 FDA reports), whose generic costs a fraction of the brand (about 99% less).
Reporting volume reflects how widely a drug is used and studied, not how dangerous it is, a FAERS report documents a temporal association, never proof of cause.
clindamycin (Cleocin) is a prescription Lincosamide Antibiotic. This medicine treats acne.
Clindamycin phosphate topical lotion is an antibiotic medicine that you put on your skin. It helps treat acne.
Verify with FDA → · CMS NADAC pricing →
Drug Shortage Alert
clindamycin is currently listed as in shortage by the FDA. Affected manufacturer: Sandoz Inc.. Status: Available.
View all drug shortages →Drug Pricing (NADAC)
Brand Price
$58.78/unit
Generic Price
$0.16/unit
Generic Savings
99%
Generic Available
Yes (59 manufacturers)
Pricing data from NADAC (CMS), effective December 18, 2024. Compare all drug costs →
NADAC price trail: CLINDAMYCIN (PEDI) 75 MG/5 ML
Same CMS presentation as the headline generic unit price above (2 effective dates). Adjacent % compares consecutive NADAC releases for this description only, not a patient out-of-pocket quote. Latest step: -17.2% vs prior release.
| Effective | NADAC / unit | vs prior | NDCs |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 21, 2024 | $0.1909/ML | - | 1 |
| December 18, 2024 | $0.1580/ML | -17.2% | 8 |
What it does
This medicine treats acne.
Common side effects
Burning, Itching, Dryness
Key warnings
Clindamycin, when taken orally or by injection, can cause severe diarrhea, bloody diarrhea, and colitis (inflammation of the colon).
The sections below are summarized in plain English from clindamycin's FDA-approved prescribing information. They describe what the official label says, and are not personal medical advice.
How It Works
Clindamycin is an antibiotic. It works by stopping the growth of bacteria. This helps to reduce inflammation and clear up acne.
Side Effects (from patient reports)
Based on 27,449 FDA adverse event reports.
Most-reported reactions
Adverse reactions in FAERS for clindamycin, by number of reports
- Drug Hypersensitivity
Drug Hypersensitivity
2,314 reports
- Diarrhoea
Diarrhoea
1,878 reports
- Rash
Rash
1,622 reports
- Nausea
Nausea
1,616 reports
- Pain
Pain
1,505 reports
- Acute Kidney Injury
Acute Kidney Injury
1,310 reports
- Chronic Kidney Disease
Chronic Kidney Disease
1,298 reports
- Fatigue
Fatigue
1,261 reports
- Dyspnoea
Dyspnoea
1,179 reports
- Pyrexia
Pyrexia
1,168 reports
What this shows Bars show how often each reaction was reported, not how likely it is to happen, a report records a temporal association, never proof that the drug caused it.
Reports over time
Adverse-event reports filed for clindamycin each year to the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS).
Year-to-year volume tracks usage, prescribing, and scrutiny, not a change in per-patient risk. Source: FDA FAERS.
Where clindamycin sits
clindamycin has more FDA adverse-event reports than 61% of the drugs FAERS tracks. A high position reflects how widely a drug is used and watched, not how dangerous it is.
Percentile across all drugs PlainMeds tracks by FAERS report volume. The dot is clindamycin; the line is the median (50th percentile).
FDA Adverse Event Report Analysis
Detailed analysis of 27,449 reports from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). Reports span 1999–2025.
Total Reports
27,449
Reports Mentioning Death
2,286
8.3% of reports — not proof of cause
Hospitalization Reports
10,349
Top Indication
Product Used For Unknown Indication
Gender Distribution
Age Distribution
Most Reported Adverse Reactions (FAERS)
| # | Reaction | Reports |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | DRUG HYPERSENSITIVITY | 2,314 |
| 3 | DIARRHOEA | 1,878 |
| 4 | RASH | 1,622 |
| 5 | NAUSEA | 1,616 |
| 6 | PAIN | 1,505 |
| 7 | ACUTE KIDNEY INJURY | 1,310 |
| 8 | CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE | 1,298 |
| 10 | FATIGUE | 1,261 |
| 11 | DYSPNOEA | 1,179 |
| 12 | PYREXIA | 1,168 |
| 13 | RENAL FAILURE | 1,072 |
| 14 | VOMITING | 981 |
| 15 | HEADACHE | 953 |
| 16 | PRURITUS | 917 |
| 17 | ANXIETY | 849 |
Reactions in Death Reports
Reactions in Hospitalization Reports
Source: FDA FAERS (Adverse Event Reporting System) Reports are voluntary and do not establish causation
Serious Warnings
Clindamycin, when taken orally or by injection, can cause severe diarrhea, bloody diarrhea, and colitis (inflammation of the colon). These problems have rarely been reported with topical clindamycin, but tell your doctor right away if you have diarrhea while using this medicine.
Known Drug Interactions
Drug Interactions Clindamycin has been shown to have neuromuscular blocking properties that may enhance the action of other neuromuscular blocking agents.
Mechanism: Clindamycin can increase the effects of drugs used to relax muscles during surgery. This could make the muscle-relaxing effect stronger or last longer than intended.
No depressant effect on blood levels in humans was noted when colestipol hydrochloride was administered with any of the following drugs: aspirin, clindamycin, clofibrate, methyldopa, nicotinic acid (niacin), tolbutamide, phenytoin or warfarin.
Mechanism: Colestipol does not seem to lower the levels of clindamycin in your blood or stop it from being absorbed.
This is a plain-language summary of FDA-label interaction records and does not provide individual medication-combination directions.
Common Questions
What is clindamycin used for?
How often should I apply the lotion?
What should I do if I get diarrhea?
Can I use this medicine if I am pregnant?
How should I store this medicine?
What if I miss a dose?
Can I use other acne treatments with this?
What are the common side effects?
Can this medicine interact with other medicines I am taking?
What should I do if my acne does not improve?
What are the common side effects of clindamycin?
Does clindamycin interact with other medications?
What drug class is clindamycin?
Is there a generic version of clindamycin?
What pregnancy or breastfeeding source fields are listed for clindamycin?
Has clindamycin been recalled?
Is clindamycin currently in shortage?
Active Recalls
Failed Impurities/Degradation: Out of Specification results for Total Impurities and for Assay.
SUN PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES INC
CGMP Deviations - products manufactured in a shared facility with Ezetimibe tablets.
RemedyRePack Inc.
Defective Container: Out of specification for weight due to a slow leakage at the 12-month stability timepoint.
Contract Pharmaceuticals Limited Canada
Related Medications in Lincosamide Antibiotic
Other drugs grouped near clindamycin - same-class peers and common alternatives.
amikacin
Amikin
Amikacin is an antibiotic medicine.
Compare with clindamycin →
amoxicillin
Amoxil
Amoxicillin and Clavulanate Potassium is a combination medicine used to fight bacterial infections.
Compare with clindamycin →
amoxicillin/clavulanate
Augmentin
Augmentin is a combination of two medicines, amoxicillin and clavulanate.
Compare with clindamycin →
ampicillin/sulbactam
Unasyn
Unasyn is a combination of two antibiotics that fights bacteria in your body.
Compare with clindamycin →
azithromycin
Zithromax, Z-Pack
Azithromycin is an antibiotic that fights bacteria.
Compare with clindamycin →
Compare beyond drug class
Nationwide peers by FAERS volume & death-report share
Two PlainMeds-derived comparison paths for clindamycin: nearest FDA FAERS report volume and nearest death-report share among drugs with at least 1,000 logged reports, excluding same-class neighbors listed above. Counts reflect reporting volume, not proven individual harm.
Similar FAERS report volume
Nearest drugs by total FAERS reports. This record: 27,449.
Similar death-report share
Nearest drugs by FAERS death-report share. This record: 8.33%.
Medication Guides
Understanding Drug Interactions
How CYP450 enzymes, inhibitors, and inducers affect your medications
Generic vs Brand Name Drugs
FDA requirements, cost savings, and when the difference matters
Narrow Therapeutic Index Drugs
FDA bioequivalence and label-record context for narrow therapeutic index medicines
Common Drug Interactions
Dangerous medication combinations and how to protect yourself
Save on clindamycin
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What the FDA Data Shows for clindamycin
The FDA label for clindamycin (sold under brand names such as Cleocin) classifies it as a prescription-only medication in the Lincosamide Antibiotic class. This medicine treats acne. Official labeling lists 6 commonly reported side effects, including Burning, Itching, Dryness.
Post-market surveillance from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) captures real-world experience. For this drug, FAERS contains 27,449 voluntary reports. The database also lists 2 documented drug interactions derived from FDA labeling, with the top-flagged interaction rated minor severity. NADAC pricing from CMS shows a generic unit cost of $0.16 versus $58.78 for the brand - a 99% generic savings.
Report counts do not establish causation, a FAERS entry documents a temporal association, not proof that the drug produced the outcome. Widely prescribed medications naturally accumulate more reports than niche therapies, so raw totals must be interpreted alongside total exposure. Shortage status, recall history (currently 3 recall records on file), and patent information are separate source-record fields. This page is a public FDA/CMS registry and does not provide medical, treatment, substitution, or medication-change directions.
Data Sources
Drug labeling: FDA Drug Labels (SPL/DailyMed). Adverse events: FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). Pricing: CMS National Average Drug Acquisition Cost (NADAC). Shortage status: FDA Drug Shortages Database.
FAERS reports are voluntary and do not establish causation. Drug interactions are derived from FDA labeling and clinical references. This registry does not provide medication decisions.
Last updated: March 22, 2024
PlainMeds is rendered directly from FDA openFDA/FAERS extracts, DailyMed labels, and CMS drug-pricing files, no number is typed in by an editor. FAERS counts, recalls, shortages, and price figures on this page are queried live from those federal extracts. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-05-15. Primary sources: openFDA / FAERS, DailyMed and CMS Part B ASP.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Data currency: FDA FAERS adverse-event reports through 2025, CMS NADAC acquisition-cost pricing effective December 2024, compiled from the source snapshot dated . See our methodology for per-source dates and refresh cadence. Spot a figure that looks wrong? Report a data issue.
All federal data sources used on this page
- FDA Orange Book - approved drug products with therapeutic equivalence. accessdata.fda.gov/cder/ob
- FDA DailyMed - NIH-hosted drug labeling for FDA-approved meds. dailymed.nlm.nih.gov
- FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) - post-marketing safety surveillance. fda.gov/drugs/faers
- NLM RxNorm - standardized clinical drug nomenclature. nlm.nih.gov/research/umls/rxnorm
- CMS Medicare Part B Drug Average Sales Price Files - federal drug pricing data. cms.gov/medicare/part-b-drugs/asp
- FDA Drug Shortages Database - current and resolved drug shortage tracking. accessdata.fda.gov/drugshortages