Summary
Ciprofloxacin has reached the approved stage (maximum clinical phase 4) for at least one indication, so its use in Sepsis would be drug repurposing rather than first-in-human development. This does not mean it is approved for Sepsis. ClinicalTrials.gov lists 8 registered trials linking Ciprofloxacin to Sepsis: 2 are currently recruiting; 4 have completed; 2 are terminated, withdrawn, suspended or of unknown status. The most advanced is Phase 3 (NCT02389036). It plans or enrolled 20010 participants. Registration activity spans 2007 to 2024. The literature layer holds 13 publications for this pair: 3 Cochrane reviews, 3 meta-analyses, 2 systematic reviews and 5 clinical trial publications. Publication years run from 2011 to 2026. Because at least one synthesis-level source exists (systematic review, meta-analysis or Cochrane review), this pair has been assessed beyond single studies, although the synthesis may concern a different indication.
The RepurpOS disease-intelligence file for Sepsis ranks 518 candidate therapeutics from Open Targets, ChEMBL, DGIdb and PubMed; only a minority carry direct clinical evidence, and this page covers one of those. Spontaneous remission context recorded for the condition: Not applicable — sepsis is an acute life-threatening syndrome; hospital mortality 15-25% for sepsis, 30-45% for septic shock with standard care; long-term complications (post-sepsis syndrome) in 50-70% of survivors.
Evidence table
| Evidence tier | A · Strong |
|---|---|
| Evidence score | 72.0 (trials 22.0, literature 30.0, tier 15, approved bonus 5.0) |
| Registered trials | 8 total: 2 recruiting, 0 active / not yet recruiting, 4 completed, 2 other |
| Linked publications | 13 (5 clinical trial publications, 3 Cochrane reviews, 3 meta-analyses, 2 systematic reviews) |
| Agent type | Drug (Small molecule) |
| Development stage (any indication) | Approved |
| Mechanism / class | Not recorded |
| Data sources | Open Targets, ChEMBL |
| Linked via biomarker / target | ADORA2A |
How the evidence score is calculated
- Each registered trial scores by status (recruiting / active / enrolling 3, completed 2.5, not yet recruiting 2, unknown 1, terminated / withdrawn / suspended 0.5) plus a phase bonus (phase 3-4 +2, phase 2 +1, phase 1 +0.5). The trial component is capped at 30.
- Each literature item scores by design (Cochrane review 5, meta-analysis 4, systematic review 3, RCT 3, clinical trial publication 2, curated reference 1.5, other PubMed record 1). The literature component is capped at 30.
- The existing evidence tier adds 15 (A / Strong), 10 (B / Moderate), 5 (C / Preliminary) or 0 (D / Anecdotal).
- Agents approved for any indication (max clinical phase 4) add 5, because an approved agent has an established safety profile that lowers the barrier to repurposing trials.
- The score ranks what has been studied, not what works. It does not read effect sizes or directions of effect.
Registered clinical trials
| NCT ID | Title | Status | Phase | Enrolment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NCT02389036 | Selective Decontamination of the Digestive Tract in Intensive Care Unit Patients 2017 | completed | Phase 3 | 20,010 |
| NCT05384197 | Enhanced Versus Extended Preoperative Antibiotic Prophylaxis Regimens for Retrograde Intrarenal Surgery in High Infectious Risk Patients 2022 | status unknown | Phase 3 | 280 |
| NCT01431326 | Pharmacokinetics of Understudied Drugs Administered to Children Per Standard of Care 2011 | completed | Not applicable | 3,520 |
| NCT01793012 | Drug Monitoring of Antibiotics in Critical Care Patients 2013 | completed | Not applicable | 186 |
| NCT01670435 | Assessment of the Safety and Efficacy of Ciproxan-I.V. in Daily Clinical Practice - Analysis Results From a Post-marketing Surveillance 2007 | completed | Not applicable | 3,274 |
| NCT06537609 | A Platform Trial for Gram Negative Bloodstream Infections 2024 | recruiting | Not applicable | 2,500 |
| NCT06080698 | Gram-Negative Bloodstream Infection Oral Antibiotic Therapy Trial 2024 | recruiting | Not applicable | 1,030 |
| NCT02240277 | Meropenem and Ciprofloxacin Dosing in Septic Shock 2014 | status unknown | Not applicable | 50 |
Published literature
- Clinical trial publication Comparison of augmented prophylaxis using intra-prostatic antibiotic injection with standard oral prophylaxis in preventing the infectious complications following trans-rectal ultrasound (TRUS)-guided prostatic biopsy: a randomized controlled studyNagaraju S, Masood PF, Goel HK et al. · International urology and nephrology · 2026 · PMID 40796678
- Cochrane review THE EFFECTIVENESS OF METAPHYLAXIS OF NEPHROLITHIASIS DURING PERCUTANEOUS NEPHROLITHOTRIPSY: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND METAANALYSISImzharov T, Zhakiev B, Sarkulov M et al. · Georgian medical news · 2025 · PMID 41072532
- Systematic review Global patterns of antibiotic resistance in group B Streptococcus: a systematic review and meta-analysisHsu CY, Moradkasani S, Suliman M et al. · Frontiers in microbiology · 2025 · PMID 40342597
- Clinical trial publication Early switch from intravenous to oral antibiotic therapy in patients with cancer who have low-risk neutropenic sepsis: the EASI-SWITCH RCTCoyle V, Forde C, Adams R et al. · Health technology assessment (Winchester, England) · 2024 · PMID 38512064
- Clinical trial publication Comparison of different regimens of short-term antibiotic prophylaxis in transrectal prostate biopsyKrsakova E, Cermak A, Fedorko M · The Journal of hospital infection · 2024 · PMID 38219833
- Clinical trial publication Early switch to oral antibiotic therapy in patients with low-risk neutropenic sepsis (EASI-SWITCH): a randomized non-inferiority trialCoyle V, Forde C, McAuley DF et al. · Clinical microbiology and infection : the official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases · 2024 · PMID 37517522
- Clinical trial publication Prospective Randomized Trial of Antibiotic Prophylaxis Duration for Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy in Low-Risk PatientsGriffiths L, Aro T, Samson P et al. · Journal of endourology · 2023 · PMID 37578113
- Meta-analysis Antimicrobial resistance among clinical Vibrio cholerae non-O1/non-O139 isolates: systematic review and meta-analysisWu Q, Vaziri AZ, Omidi N et al. · Pathogens and global health · 2023 · PMID 35983997
- Meta-analysis The effects of adding quinolones to beta-lactam antibiotics for sepsisKorang SK, Maagaard M, Feinberg JB et al. · Acta anaesthesiologica Scandinavica · 2021 · PMID 33864250
- Systematic review Standardised treatment protocol for necrotizing otitis externa: retrospective case series and systematic literature reviewFrost J, Samson AD · Journal of global antimicrobial resistance · 2021 · PMID 34273591
- Meta-analysis Bacterial pathogens and resistance causing community acquired paediatric bloodstream infections in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysisDroz N, Hsia Y, Ellis S et al. · Antimicrobial resistance and infection control · 2019 · PMID 31893041
- Cochrane review Fluoroquinolones in children with fever and neutropenia: a systematic review of prospective trialsSung L, Manji A, Beyene J et al. · The Pediatric infectious disease journal · 2012 · PMID 22189521
- Cochrane review Ciprofloxacin use in neonates: a systematic review of the literatureKaguelidou F, Turner MA, Choonara I et al. · The Pediatric infectious disease journal · 2011 · PMID 21048525
Mechanism and notes
No mechanism of action is recorded for this pair in the source databases.
OSMF's existing evidence tier for this pair is A (Strong), derived from the strength of the disease association recorded in Open Targets and ChEMBL, in this case via the biomarker or target ADORA2A. The tier describes how well the drug-disease link is documented, not how well the drug works.
Frequently asked questions
Is Ciprofloxacin approved for Sepsis?
Ciprofloxacin has reached the approved stage (maximum clinical phase 4) for at least one indication, so its use in Sepsis would be drug repurposing rather than first-in-human development. This does not mean it is approved for Sepsis. Approval status for the specific indication should always be confirmed with the relevant regulator and prescribing information.
Is Ciprofloxacin in clinical trials for Sepsis?
ClinicalTrials.gov lists 8 registered trials linking Ciprofloxacin to Sepsis: 2 are currently recruiting; 4 have completed; 2 are terminated, withdrawn, suspended or of unknown status. The most advanced is Phase 3 (NCT02389036). It plans or enrolled 20010 participants. Registration activity spans 2007 to 2024.
What does the evidence show for Ciprofloxacin in Sepsis?
Ciprofloxacin has both completed registered trials and synthesis-level publications linked to Sepsis. That is the strongest profile in this database, but the summaries here do not extract effect sizes, so read the linked reviews for direction and magnitude of benefit. OSMF's existing evidence tier for this pair is A (Strong), derived from the strength of the disease association recorded in Open Targets and ChEMBL, in this case via the biomarker or target ADORA2A. The tier describes how well the drug-disease link is documented, not how well the drug works.
Cite this page
Data: ClinicalTrials.gov, PubMed, Open Targets, ChEMBL, DGIdb and the OSMF therapeutic agent database. Last updated 2026-07-05. Page built 2026-10-07.