A Case of Cefepime-Induced Immune Thrombocytopenia

Drug-induced immune thrombocytopenia (DITP) is a rare adverse event. It is often diagnosed using clinical risk criteria, but this can create diagnostic uncertainty.

A 35-year-old man with disseminated Serratia marcescens infection developed severe thrombocytopenia. A drug-dependent platelet-reactive antibody test demonstrated cefepime-dependent platelet-reactive antibodies which confirmed the diagnosis of DITP.

We describe the first case of cefepime-induced DITP confirmed by a drug-dependent platelet-reactive antibody test. To our knowledge, this is the first proven example of DITP in a fourth-generation cephalosporin.