Cidofovir and Gentamicin Interaction
Drug interaction information between Cidofovir and Gentamicin.
Cidofovir and Gentamicin have a documented major interaction in FDA labeling.
FDA drug labeling documents a major-severity interaction between Cidofovir and Gentamicin. Major interactions are generally avoided, moderate ones may need monitoring or a dose adjustment, and minor ones are usually low-risk. This page shows the documented mechanism and guidance. Label-documented interactions are not a complete safety review, so always confirm your own medications with a pharmacist or doctor. Educational information, not medical advice.
How They Interact
These medications are both known to be toxic to the kidneys. Using them together can cause severe kidney problems.
What To Do
This combination should be avoided. Your healthcare provider will need to find a safer alternative.
FDA Label Information
Nephrotoxic agents Concomitant administration of cidofovir injection and agents with nephrotoxic potential [e.g., intravenous aminoglycosides (e.g., tobramycin, gentamicin, and amikacin), amphotericin B, foscarnet, intravenous pentamidine, vancomycin, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents] is contraindicated.
Cidofovir Also Interacts With
- Vancomycin major
- Tobramycin major
- Amikacin major
- Amphotericin B major
- Furosemide minor
Gentamicin Also Interacts With
- Bictegravir/Emtricitabine/Tenofovir minor
- Digoxin minor
- Emtricitabine/Tenofovir minor
- Perindopril minor
- Piperacillin/Tazobactam minor
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I take Cidofovir and Gentamicin together?
This is a major interaction. This combination should be avoided. Your healthcare provider will need to find a safer alternative.
How serious is the interaction between Cidofovir and Gentamicin?
This interaction is classified as "major" severity by the FDA. Major interactions may be life-threatening or cause serious side effects.
Why do Cidofovir and Gentamicin interact?
These medications are both known to be toxic to the kidneys. Using them together can cause severe kidney problems.
Understanding the Cidofovir and Gentamicin Interaction
FDA-approved prescribing information for these two drugs flags their combination as a major-severity interaction. Cidofovir belongs to the Antiviral (Nucleotide Analog) class and Gentamicin belongs to the Aminoglycoside Antibiotic class - two categories that can collide when co-prescribed. The mechanism described in FDA labeling is: These medications are both known to be toxic to the kidneys. Severity tiers matter: major flags generally advise avoidance, moderate flags often require monitoring or dose adjustment, and minor flags may only call for awareness.
Context around a specific patient determines real-world impact. Cidofovir has 16 total documented interactions on file in this dataset, and Gentamicin has 7. Each additional medication compounds the interaction surface, which is why pharmacists run full-profile checks rather than evaluating one pair at a time. FDA-derived guidance for this pair is: This combination should be avoided. Timing of doses, renal and hepatic function, age, and other concurrent prescriptions all shape whether a labeled interaction matters clinically.
An interaction flag is not a verdict. A large share of labeled interactions are managed routinely in clinical practice, the fix may be as simple as spacing doses or adding a monitoring test. Others require the prescriber to choose a different medication entirely. This page surfaces FDA-sourced labeling and openFDA data for educational purposes only; it is not medical advice and cannot account for your full clinical picture. Never start, stop, or adjust either Cidofovir or Gentamicin based on a web page, speak with your prescriber or pharmacist before making any change.
Sources: FDA Drug Labels (SPL) via openFDA (2026). This is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider about drug interactions.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.