Amoxicillin Clavulanate: ABFM practice questions

5 board-style questions on amoxicillin clavulanate in the PulseMD family medicine question bank, written against current guidelines with the reference cited on each question. Two free samples below; the full set with answers, explanations, and spaced review is free to start.

Sample question 1

A 35-year-old man presents with 12 days of persistent nasal congestion, facial pressure, and thick yellow-green nasal discharge. His symptoms initially improved after a week but then worsened over the past 3 days. He has a temperature of 38.3°C (100.9°F) and bilateral maxillary sinus tenderness. He has no drug allergies and no recent antibiotic use. Which of the following is the most appropriate initial antibiotic therapy?

  1. Amoxicillin-clavulanate 875/125 mg twice daily for 5-7 days
  2. Levofloxacin 500 mg daily for 10 days
  3. Azithromycin 500 mg day 1, then 250 mg days 2-5
  4. Cephalexin 500 mg four times daily for 14 days

Sample question 2

A 45-year-old man presents with 2 weeks of fatigue, nausea, dark urine, and jaundice. He was started on amoxicillin-clavulanate 3 weeks ago for a sinus infection. He denies alcohol use, herbal supplements, or acetaminophen use. Labs show AST 180 U/L, ALT 210 U/L, alkaline phosphatase 340 U/L, total bilirubin 6.2 mg/dL, and direct bilirubin 4.8 mg/dL. Viral hepatitis serologies and autoimmune markers are negative. Abdominal ultrasound shows no biliary dilation. Which of the following statements about this patient's likely diagnosis is most accurate?

  1. The hepatocellular pattern of injury confirms intrinsic drug toxicity
  2. Amoxicillin-clavulanate typically causes cholestatic or mixed hepatotoxicity that can present weeks after completing the antibiotic
  3. Rechallenge with amoxicillin alone is contraindicated
  4. N-acetylcysteine should be started immediately as it is the specific antidote

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