Daptomycin
Fights serious bacterial infections that resist other antibiotics. A hospital-grade anti-infective peptide.
This peptide is an FDA-approved drug product that can be legally prescribed by licensed clinicians.
The basics
- Generic Name
- daptomycin (cyclic lipopeptide antibiotic)
- Brand Names
- Cubicin, Cubicin RF
- Regulatory Status
- Prescribed by Doctors
- Therapeutic Areas
- Anti-Infective
- Prescribing Specialties
- Infectious disease, Hospital medicine
What it does
Daptomycin is an FDA-approved medication that your doctor can prescribe. Cyclic lipopeptide antibiotic that binds to bacterial cell membranes in a calcium-dependent manner, causing rapid depolarization and loss of membrane potential, leading to inhibition of protein, DNA, and RNA synthesis.
How it's taken
Intravenous infusion (hospital or outpatient infusion center)
How people access it
Hospital-administered antibiotic. May be continued via outpatient IV infusion services.
What doctors prescribe it for
- Complicated skin and skin structure infections caused by susceptible Gram-positive organisms
- Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia
- Right-sided infective endocarditis caused by S. aureus
Clinicians may prescribe FDA-approved drugs for off-label uses based on their clinical judgment. Off-label indications have not undergone the same FDA review process as the labeled uses listed above.
How to know it's legit
You can independently verify the FDA-approval status of Daptomycin through these free, publicly available databases:
- DailyMed (dailymed.nlm.nih.gov) — Search for Cubicin to find the current FDA-approved labeling, including indications, dosing, warnings, and contraindications.
- Drugs@FDA (accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cder/daf/) — Search to find the original approval letter, review documents, and approval history.
- FDA Orange Book (orangebook.fda.gov) — Search for therapeutic equivalence evaluations and patent/exclusivity information.
Common Questions
Yes. Daptomycin (Cubicin, Cubicin RF) is an FDA-approved drug product. It has undergone rigorous review of safety, efficacy, and manufacturing quality by the FDA. It can be legally prescribed by licensed clinicians for its approved indications.
Daptomycin is FDA-approved for: Complicated skin and skin structure infections caused by susceptible Gram-positive organisms; Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia; Right-sided infective endocarditis caused by S. aureus. Off-label use may be considered by clinicians on a case-by-case basis, but only the labeled indications have been reviewed and approved by the FDA.
You can verify the approval status of Daptomycin through several official FDA resources: DailyMed (dailymed.nlm.nih.gov) for current labeling, Drugs@FDA (accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cder/daf/) for approval history, and the FDA Orange Book for therapeutic equivalence information. These are free, publicly available databases.
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Explore how Daptomycin compares to other options, or dive deeper into how FDA approval works.
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