Cefotetan-induced anaphylaxis.

Three cases of anaphylactic reactions associated with the use of intravenous cefotetan as surgical prophylaxis for cesarean section (two cases) and transabdominal hysterectomy (one case) are presented. Comprehensive review of these cases revealed no evidence of lot-specific association, drug-drug interaction, or methodologic variance. During the 4-month interval that cefotetan was selectively used for surgical prophylaxis at our hospital, we observed a 1.4% incidence of anaphylactic hypersensitivity reactions associated with its use.