What can happen if you take a cephalosporin and drink alcohol

Taking cephalosporin and drinking alcohol is likely to trigger a disulfiram-like reaction, resulting in dizziness and vomiting, decreased blood pressure, dyspnea, arrhythmia, anaphylactic shock and even death. Cephalosporin antibacterial drugs can inhibit ethanol metabolism in the process of acetaldehyde dehydrogenase, so that ethanol can not be successfully metabolized resulting in acetaldehyde accumulation poisoning, resulting in a disulfiram-like reaction. After using the drug and then drinking alcohol that is weak, dizziness, drowsiness, hallucinations, generalized flushing, headache, nausea, vomiting, blood pressure drop, heart rate increase, and even anaphylactic shock and other reactions, severe can cause death. The use of drugs that can cause disulfiram-like reaction, such as cephalosporin antibacterial drugs (such as cefoperazone sodium, cefoperazone sodium sumatriptan sodium, etc.), nitroimidazole drugs (such as metronidazole, tinidazole), etc., during the period of use and as long as possible after the cessation of the drug, it should be prohibited to drink alcoholic beverages and food containing alcohol. If adverse symptoms occur after taking cephalosporin and drinking alcohol, it should be sent to the hospital immediately to avoid delaying the condition.