Patient leaflet - Amoxicillin 500 mg capsules hard

1. What Amoxicillin capsules are and what they are used for

What Amoxicillin capsules are

The name of this medicine is Amoxicillin capsules. The active substance in this medicine is called amoxicillin trihydrate, which belongs to a group of antibiotics called broad-spectrum penicillins.

What Amoxicillin capsules are used for

Amoxicillin capsules are used to treat infections caused by bacteria in diﬀerent parts of the body. Amoxicillin may also be used in combination with other medicines to treat stomach ulcers.

2. What you need to know before you take Amoxicillin capsules

Do not take Amoxicillin capsules

if you are allergic to amoxicillin, penicillin or
any of the other ingredients of this medicine (listed in section 6)
if you have ever had an allergic reaction to
any antibiotic. This can include a skin rash or swelling of the face or throat.

Do not take Amoxicillin capsules if any of the above apply to you. If you are not sure, talk to your doctor or pharmacist before taking this medicine.

Warnings and precautions

Talk to your doctor or pharmacist before taking Amoxicillin capsules:

if you have glandular fever (fever, sore
throat, swollen glands and extreme tiredness)
if you suﬀer from kidney problems
if you are not urinating regularly.

If you are not sure if any of the above apply to you, talk to your doctor or pharmacist before taking Amoxicillin capsules.

Blood and urine tests

If you are having:

Urine tests (glucose) or blood tests for liver
function
Oestriol tests (used during pregnancy to
check the baby is developing normally) Tell your doctor or pharmacist that you are taking Amoxicillin capsules. This is because Amoxicillin capsules can aﬀect the results of these tests.

Other medicines and Amoxicillin capsules

Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking, have recently taken or might take any other medicines.

If you are taking allopurinol (used for gout)
with Amoxicillin capsules, it may be more likely that you will have an allergic skin reaction.
If you are taking probenecid (used to treat
gout), concomitant use of probenecid may reduce the excretion of amoxicillin and is not recommended.
If you are taking medicines to help stop
blood clots (such as warfarin), you may need extra blood tests.
If you are taking other antibiotics (such as
tetracycline), Amoxicillin capsules may be less eﬀective.
If you are taking methotrexate (used to treat
cancer and severe psoriasis), penicillins may reduce the excretion of methotrexate causing a potential increase in side eﬀects

Pregnancy and breast-feeding

If you are pregnant or breast-feeding, think you may be pregnant or are planning to have a baby, ask your doctor or pharmacist for advice before taking this medicine.

Driving and using machines

This medicine can cause side eﬀects and symptoms (such as allergic reactions, dizziness and ﬁts) that may make you unﬁt to drive. Do not drive or operate machinery unless you are feeling well.

Amoxicillin capsules contain sodium

This medicine contains less than 1 mmol sodium (23 mg) per capsule, that is to say

essentially 'sodium-free'.

3. How to take Amoxicillin capsules

Always take this medicine exactly as your doctor or pharmacist has told you. Check with your doctor or pharmacist if you are not sure.

Swallow with water without opening the capsules.
Space the doses evenly during the day, at least 4 hours apart.

The usual dose is:

Adults, elderly patients and children weighing 40 kg or more

The usual dose of this medicine is 250 mg to 500 mg three times a day or 750 mg to 1000 mg every 12 hours, depending on the severity and type of infection.

Severe infections: 750 mg to 1000 mg three times a day.
Urinary tract infection: 3000 mg twice daily for one day.
Lyme disease (an infection spread by parasites called ticks): Isolated erythema migrans (early stage – red or pink circular rash): 4000 mg a day, Systemic manifestations (late stage – for more serious symptoms or when the disease spreads around your body): up to 6000 mg a day.
Stomach ulcers: one 750 mg or one 1000 mg dose twice a day for 7 days with other antibiotics and medicines to treat stomach ulcers.
To prevent heart infection during surgery: the dose will vary according to the type of surgery.

Other medicines may also be given at the same time. Your doctor, pharmacist or nurse can give you more details.

The maximum recommended dose is 6000 mg per day.

Use in children weighing less than 40 kg

All doses are worked out depending on the child's body weight in kilograms.

Your doctor will advise you how much of this medicine you should give to your child.
The usual dose is 40 mg to 90 mg for each kilogram of body weight a day, given in two or three divided doses.
The maximum recommended dose is 100 mg for each kilogram of body weight a day.

Kidney problems

If you have kidney problems the dose might be lower than the usual dose.

If you take more Amoxicillin capsules than you should

If you have taken too much of this medicine, signs of overdose might be an upset stomach (feeling sick, being sick or diarrhoea) or crystals in the urine, which may be seen as cloudy urine, or problems urinating. Talk to your doctor as soon as possible. Take the medicine to show the doctor.

If you forget to take Amoxicillin capsules

If you forget to take a dose, take it as soon as you remember.
Do not take the next dose too soon, wait about 4 hours before taking the next dose.
Do not take a double dose to make up for a forgotten dose.

How long should you take Amoxicillin capsules for?

Keep taking Amoxicillin capsules for as long as your doctor has told you to, even if you feel better. You need every dose to help ﬁght the infection. If some bacteria survive, they can cause the infection to come back.
Once you ﬁnish treatment, if you still feel unwell you should go back to see the doctor.

Thrush (a yeast infection of moist areas of the body which can cause soreness, itching and white discharge) may develop if Amoxicillin capsules is used for a long time. If this occurs tell your doctor.

If you take Amoxicillin capsules for a long time, your doctor may perform additional tests to check your kidneys, liver and blood are working normally.

If you have any further questions on the use of this medicine, ask your doctor or pharmacist.

4. Possible side eﬀects

Like all medicines, this medicine can cause side eﬀects, although not everybody gets them.

Stop taking Amoxicillin capsules and see a doctor straight away, if you notice any of the following serious side eﬀects – you may need urgent medical treatment:

The following are very rare (may aﬀect up to 1 in 10,000 people)

allergic reactions, the signs may include:
skin itching or rash, swelling of the face, lips, tongue, body or breathing diﬃculties. These can be serious and occasionally deaths have occurred
rash or pinpoint ﬂat red round spots under the skin surface or bruising of the skin. This is due to inﬂammation of blood vessel walls due to an allergic reaction. It can be associated with joint pain (arthritis) and kidney problems
a delayed allergic reaction can occur usually
7 to 12 days after having Amoxicillin capsules, some signs include: rashes, fever, joint pains and enlargement of the lymph nodes especially under the arms
a skin reaction known as 'erythema

In House:

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other severe skin reactions can include:
changes in skin colour, bumps under the skin, blistering, pustules, peeling, redness, pain, itching, scaling. These may be associated with fever, headaches and body aches
ﬂu-like symptoms with a rash, fever, swollen
glands, and abnormal blood test results (including increased white blood cells (eosinophilia) and liver enzymes) (Drug Reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms (DRESS)).
high temperature (fever), chills, a sore throat
or other signs of an infection, or if you bruise easily. These may be signs of a problem with your blood cells
the Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction which
occur during treatment with Amoxicillin capsules for Lyme disease and causes fever, chills, headache, muscle pain and skin rash.
inﬂammation of the large bowel (colon)
with diarrhoea (sometimes containing blood), pain and fever
serious liver side eﬀects may occur. They are
mainly associated with people having treatment over a long period, males and the elderly. You must tell doctor urgently if you get:
- severe diarrhoea with bleeding
- blisters, redness or bruising of the skin
- darker urine or paler stools
- yellowing of the skin or the whites of the

eyes (jaundice). See also anaemia below which might result in jaundice.

Chest pain in the context of allergic
reactions, which may be a symptom of allergy triggered cardiac infarction (Kounis syndrome)
Drug-induced enterocolitis syndrome
(DIES): DIES has been reported mainly in children receiving amoxicillin. It is a certain kind of allergic reaction with the leading symptom of repetitive vomiting (1-4 hours after drug administration). Further symptoms could comprise abdominal pain, lethargy, diarrhoea, and low blood pressure.
Rash with blisters arranged in a circle with
central crusting or like a string of pearls (linear IgA disease)

These can happen when taking the medicine or for up to several weeks after.

If any of the above happens, stop taking the medicine and see your doctor straight away.

Sometimes you may get less severe skin reactions such as:

a middle itchy rash (round, pink-red
patches), 'hive-like' swollen areas on forearms, legs, palms, hands or feet. This is uncommon (may aﬀect up to 1 in 100 people).

If you have any of these talk to your doctor as Amoxicillin capsules will need to be stopped.

The other possible side eﬀects are:

Common (may aﬀect up to 1 in 10 people)

skin rash
feeling sick (nausea)
diarrhoea.

Uncommon (may aﬀect up to 1 in 100 people)

being sick (vomiting).

Very rare (may aﬀect up to 1 in 10,000 people)

thrush (a yeast infection of the vagina,
mouth or skin folds), you can get treatment for thrush from your doctor or pharmacist
kidney problems
ﬁts (convulsions), seen in patients on high
doses or with kidney problems
dizziness
hyperactivity
crystals in the urine, leading to acute renal
injury which may be seen as cloudy urine, or diﬃculty or discomfort in passing urine. Make sure you drink plenty of ﬂuids to reduce the chances of these symptoms
the tongue may change to yellow, brown or
black and it may have a hairy appearance
an excessive breakdown of red blood cells
causing a form of anaemia. Signs include: tiredness, headaches, shortness of breath, dizziness, looking pale and yellowing of the skin and the whites of the eyes
low number of white blood cells
low number of cells involved in blood
clotting
the blood may take longer to clot than it
normally would. You may notice this if you have a nosebleed or cut yourself.
inﬂammation of the membranes that
surround the brain and spinal cord (aseptic meningitis).

Reporting of side eﬀects

If you get any side eﬀects, talk to your doctor or pharmacist. This includes any possible side eﬀects not listed in this leaﬂet. You can also report side eﬀects directly via Yellow Card Scheme, Website:

www.mhra.gov.uk/yellowcard or search for MHRA Yellow Card in the Google Play or Apple App Store. By reporting side eﬀects you can help provide more information on the safety of this medicine.

5. How to store Amoxicillin capsules

Keep this medicine out of the sight and reach of children.

Do not use this medicine after the expiry date which is stated on the carton after EXP. The expiry date refers to the last day of that month.

This medicinal product does not require any special storage conditions.

Do not use this medicine if you notice visible signs of deterioration.

Do not throw away any medicines via wastewater or household waste. Ask your pharmacist how to throw away medicines you no longer use. These measures will help protect the environment.

6. Contents of the pack and other information

What Amoxicillin capsules contain

The active substance is amoxicillin
trihydrate.
Each capsule contains amoxicillin trihydrate equivalent to amoxicillin 250 mg. Each capsule contains amoxicillin trihydrate equivalent to amoxicillin 500 mg.
The other ingredients are: puriﬁed talc, sodium lauryl sulphate, magnesium stearate.
Capsule cap: gelatin, puriﬁed water, iron oxide red.
Capsule body: gelatin, puriﬁed water, iron oxide yellow
Printing Ink:
shellac, dehydrated alcohol, isopropyl alcohol, butyl alcohol, propylene glycol, strong ammonia solution, black iron oxide, potassium hydroxide, puriﬁed water.

What Amoxicillin capsules looks like and contents of the pack

White to oﬀ- white powder/slug form enclosed in Red translucence, yellow translucence hard gelatin capsule of size '2' with 'AMOXY 250' printing in black ink on it.

White to oﬀ- white powder/slug form enclosed in Red translucence, yellow translucence hard gelatin capsule of size '0' with 'AMOXY 500' printing in black ink on it.

Amoxicillin capsules 250 mg and 500 mg are supplied clear PVC blister pack of 15 & 21 capsules.

Not all packs sizes may be marketed.

Marketing Authorization Holder and Manufacturer

Ipca Laboratories UK Ltd.

Unit 97-98, Silverbriar,

Sunderland Enterprise Park East,

Sunderland, SR5 2TQ

United Kingdom

This leaﬂet was last revised 06/2025

General advice regarding the use of antibiotics

Antibiotics are used to treat infections caused by bacteria. They have no eﬀect against infections caused by viruses. Sometimes an infection caused by bacteria does not respond to a course of an antibiotic. One of the commonest reasons for this to occur is because the bacteria causing the infection are resistant to the antibiotic that is being taken. This means that they can survive and even multiply despite the antibiotic.

Bacteria can become resistant to antibiotics for many reasons. Using antibiotics carefully can help to reduce the chance of bacteria becoming resistant to them. When your doctor prescribes a course of an antibiotic it is intended to treat only your current illness. Paying attention to the following advice will help prevent the emergence of resistant bacteria that could stop the antibiotic working.

1. It is very important that you take the antibiotic at the right dose, at the right times and for the right number of days. Read the instructions on the label and if you do not understand anything ask your doctor or pharmacist to explain.
2. You should not take an antibiotic unless it has been prescribed speciﬁcally for you and you should use it only to treat the infection for which it was prescribed.
3. You should not take antibiotics that have been prescribed for other people even if they had an infection that was similar to yours.
4. You should not give antibiotics that were prescribed for you to other people.
5. If you have any antibiotic left over when you have taken the course as directed by your doctor you should take the remainder to a pharmacy for appropriate disposal. Back