We all know that antibiotics are not good for us for one reason or the other. We are allergic to some, the bugs love others and get fat on them, and then there is a class that actually works quite well, a broad spectrum class that can kill both gram+ and gram- bacteria (these are stains that make them visible under microscope) but… and here is the problem. Many of us get this particular class of antibiotics because they work so well but it was just brought to my attention that this drug class has two black box warning on it!
What is a black box? It is a special warning “… reserved for prescription drugs that pose a significant risk of serious or life-threatening adverse effects, based on medical studies…” as per the American Society of Consultant Pharmacies. Usually black box warnings are associated with psychotropic medications of the worst kinds (by worst I mean possibly causing the most danger) but who would expect one on a class of drugs we get for simple bacterial infections? In fact there are 36 drugs listed in this class on Wikipedia. This class is called Fluoroquinolones.
The list of damages this class causes is huge. Many of the most recently added side effects look, sound and feel like this drug may be one of the largest contributing factors of the recent epidemic of fibromyalgia. I do not know a single person who has not taken this drug. Its effects can be immediate but also build up. Once you reach a threshold, you will get ill. I, for example, have taken it for years without any problems and then suddenly I developed a tendon problem. That was 2 years ago. It took me this connection to realize that it was because of Cipro! There was no other reason for it: I casually walked our evening walk as usual, comfortably, no running, no jumping and bang. All of a sudden I had to limp home on tip toe. It took over a year to recover and I was lucky! It was my tendon and not my nervous system–so far at least!
I am providing you with links to literature that will take you further in reading and after the links I copy-paste here the side effects from Wikipedia so you know what to expect:
http://baronandbudd.com/protecting-whats-right/2014/09/side-effects-of-cipro-levaquin-and-avelox/
http://floxiehope.com/2014/09/08/side-effects-cipro-levaquin-avelox/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levofloxacin
http://www.aafp.org/afp/2000/0501/p2741.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Fluoroquinolone_antibiotics
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/10/20/fluoroquinolones-side-effects.aspx
Side effects from Wikipedia:
“Adverse effects
In general, fluoroquinolones are well tolerated, with most side-effects being mild to moderate. On occasion, serious adverse effects occur. Common side-effects include gastrointestinal effects such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, as well as headache and insomnia.
The overall rate of adverse events in patients treated with fluoroquinolones is roughly similar to that seen in patients treated with other antibiotic classes. A U.S. Centers for Disease Control study found patients treated with fluoroquinolones experienced adverse events severe enough to lead to an emergency department visit more frequently than those treated with cephalosporins or macrolides, but less frequently than those treated with penicillins, clindamycin, sulfonamides, or vancomycin.
Post-marketing surveillance has revealed a variety of relatively rare but serious adverse effects that are associated with all members of the fluoroquinolone antibacterial class. Among these, tendon problems and exacerbation of the symptoms of the neurological disorder myasthenia gravis are the subject of “black box” warnings in the United States. Quinolones are associated with an increase risk of tendonitis and tendon rupture in all age groups. This side effect is most common but not limited to the Achilles tendon. Fluoroquinolone-associated tendinopathy symptoms have occurred as early as 2 hours after the initial fluoroquinolone exposure and as late as 6 months after the medication was discontinued. The most severe form of tendonopathy associated with fluoroquinolone administration is tendon rupture, which in the great majority of cases involves the Achilles tendon. Younger people typically experience good recovery, but permanent disability is possible, and is more likely in older patients. The overall frequency of fluoroquinolone-associated Achilles tendon rupture in patients treated with ciprofloxacin or levofloxacin is has been estimated at 17 per 100,000 treatments (three times the rate in people without fluoroquinolone exposure). Risk is substantially elevated in the elderly and in those with recent exposure to topical or systemic corticosteroid therapy. Simultaneous use of corticosteroids is present in almost one-third of quinolone-associated tendon rupture. Other risk factors include patients with kidney, heart and lung transplants, strenuous physical activity during or immediately after treatment, renal failure or previous tendon disorders like rheumatoid arthritis. Some experts have advised avoidance of fluoroquinolones in athletes.
Fluoroquinolones (FQs) prolong the heart’s QT interval by blocking voltage-gated potassium channels. Prolongation of the QT interval can lead to torsades de pointes, a life-threatening arrhythmia, but in practice this appears relatively uncommon in part because the most widely prescribed fluoroquinolones (ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin) only minimally prolong the QT interval.
Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea may occur in connection with the use of any antibacterial drug, especially those with a broad spectrum of activity such as clindamycin, cephalosporins, and fluoroquinolones. Fluoroquinoline treatment is associated with risk that is similar to or less than that associated with broad spectrum cephalosporins. Fluoroquinoline administration may be associated with the acquisition and outgrowth of a particularly virulent Clostridium strain.
The U.S. prescribing information contains a warning regarding uncommon cases of peripheral neuropathy, which can be permanent. Other nervous system effects include insomnia, restlessness, and rarely, seizure, convulsions, and psychosis. Other rare and serious adverse events have been observed with varying degrees of evidence for causation.
Events that may occur in acute overdose are rare, and include renal failure and seizure. Susceptible groups of patients, such as children and the elderly, are at greater risk of adverse reactions during therapeutic use.
Contraindications
Quinolones are contraindicated if a patient has epilepsy, QT prolongation, pre-existing CNS lesions, or CNS inflammation, or the patient has suffered a stroke. They are best avoided in the athlete population. There are safety concerns of fluoroquinolone use during pregnancy and, as a result, are contraindicated except for when no other safe alternative antibiotic exists. However, one meta-analysis looking at the outcome of pregnancies involving Quinolone use in the first trimester found no increased risk of malformations. They are also contraindicated in children due to the risks of damage to the musculoskeletal system. Their use in children is not absolutely contraindicated, however. For certain severe infections where other antibiotics are not an option, their use can be justified. Quinolones should also not be given to people with a known hypersensitivity to the drug.”
As you can see, this is not a drug to be taken lightly. In fact it has a 43-page long warning that is supposed to be included in the box when you get this medicine but as many times as I have taken it, I never ever received the black box warning. You can find the 43-page warning here.
So next time you have a bacterial infection, I recommend you print this page out and many of the pages at the links and if you wish the 43-page warning and show your doctor. Demand an alternate medication. Furthermore, since the drug actively interferes with the voltage gated potassium channels, migraine sufferers will likely end up with migraine and in general everyone taking it will be dehydrated.
Your comments and questions are welcomed!
Angela
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I took this poison, Cipro in March of this year for a kidney infection. I was given IV in the ER and 2x 500mg PO for 7 day!! I started to feel weird things a few day before a finished them.
I started waking up soaked in sweat, having my heart beat so fast I thought i was having a heart attack or panic attack. I dismissed this but this progressed to depression. I’ve felt down in my life but not depressed. Then I started feeling tingling in my legs, head and crawling sensation in my head. Also, twitches in different parts of my body and tightened shoulder and neck area. This, has me worried sick to the point I think that might be MS . The internet is a great source but at the same time you can fin really bad stories. I’ll be seeing a neurologist tomorrow. I hope and pray is not MS or any other horrible disease because my brain started to think of the worse. I have faith that this symptoms are going to subside….
Thank you for your article! I hope that these dangerous antibiotics are taken out of the market and treatment for their toxicity can be implemented.
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Dear Marina,
Even if you do have MS, it is no longer a disease that needs to progress. Watch this video from TED talks by Dr. Terry Wahls, who has MS and was already in levitating chairs and thought she was a “goner” when she decided to do something about it and today is a walking, talking miracle. The miracle is really not a miracle–health conditions, such as MS or being floxed by Cipro or other quinolones are damages to the cells and/or the mitochondria within.
MS is a condition in which the brain cells are damaged as a result of the damaged myelin (insulation) and so long that you know how to replenish the myelin (hint: made from fat and cholesterol) you can prevent MS and perhaps reverse it and put it to remission for good.
In terms of having been floxed; it is a problem with the mitochondrial DNA. It too can be helped (I reversed mine) by getting on the ketogenic diet with intermittent fasting.
For the body’s cells the worst things we can do are eating carbohydrates of all types because glucose damages the myelin and also causes increased insulin that backs glucose up causing lots of metabolic problems that contribute to further damage. By changing your lifestyle and resetting your metabolism, and by incorporating intermittent fasting in particular, your body can replace the damaged DNA. You should also supplement with bioavailable CoQ10 (ubiquinol), since it is the thing that can help your mitochondria create ATP, which is the broken mechanism as a result of Cipro.
So don’t give up, be smart about it. Don’t start on any medicines because they all cause further damage: there are no medicines for damage caused by quinolones so don’t accept any!
Good luck!
Angela
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Was prescribed Levofloxacin for a UTI half a year ago.. I took 4 of the 6 prescribed dosage.
It is hard to write this due to tendonitis and swelling in hands!
I used to be an active and strong 50+ woman who exerscised, played piano and sang and was involved in many other pursuits.
I’ve suffered peripheral nerve damage, tendonopathy, edema, and vision problems, as well as photo sensitivity. (Not just sunburn where the sun hits my skin, but also all over my body!)
Compared to my life before this “antibiotic” I have no life now.
,
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Very sorry to hear what happened to you Joan. From what I am starting to understand, there is hope though. The ketogenic diet with intermittent fasting generates new stem cells with undamaged fresh mitochondria. That is the only way at this point how you can renew your damaged cells. I started a keto group on FB, which is for migraine but there are people there with other problems. If you join there, I can be in better position to try to help. The group is here. Please join and mention this post so I can help you directly and not consider you a migraineur. ❤
Hugs,
Angela
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Cipro ended my life.
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Very sorry to hear your suffering Jeff. Do file a complaint as an addition to my citizen petition at the FDA against the use of Cipro (and other quinolones). The FDA needs to hear stories like yours to remove the drug and so research for treatment of those hurt can begin. See they will not do any work toward finding treatment until the drug is officially permitted to be used–it is not harmful enough for that! So do fill in a comment form: http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=FDA-2014-P-1753 you will find 3 files there, one was sent by email and 2 by snail mail.. they posted all 3 for some reason.. so pick one–they are all the same–and click on the “comment” button.
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Thank you for any other informative web site. The place else may I get that kind of info written in such a perfect way?
I have a challenge that I’m simply now working on, and I have been at the
look out for such information.
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Cipro and other fluoroquinolones are also contraindicated in anyone currently taking, withdrawing from or who has EVER withdrawn from benzodiazepines. http://www.psychmedaware.org/blog/fluoroquinolone-antibiotics.html
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Thank you Alex! Important information I was not yet aware of! Greatly appreciated!
Angela
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I’ve been reading a lot today, and ran across this article:
http://toxsci.oxfordjournals.org/content/69/1/16.full
It made me wonder if some of the physical effects are worse for people who spend a lot of time outdoors, or who are exposed to UVA in their professions. I spent quite a lot of time outdoors the year following Cipro, and grew worse the whole time. If FQs are cleaving to our DNA, can they continue to be phototoxic? My skin and tendons were destroyed, and the damage is the worst wherever I was exposed to sunlight.
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Michelle, everything is possible. I am just starting to understand by two experts, one an RN and one a chemist that Cipro (and drugs in the quinolone family) destroy the magnesium in your cells systematically–meaning in your whole body in all cells. So what you need to do is grab a bottle of magnesium and take a couple of pills every day until you recover! Without magnesium the cells die because they cannot take in oxygen or food or any kind of energy! Magnesium is a key element in the cell’s openings it sodium-potassium pumps as well and for mitochondria breathing in general. Because this drug took all that out, you need to start forcing it back in. I am still working on this case–it is new to me–so please read up and see if there is some other supplement you need to take to enhance the absorption of magnesium into your cells.
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Thanks Angela, I’m already taking about 20 pills a day, and I am part of a FQ toxicity support group so I learned about the magnesium depletion about the same time I found out I was floxed… a couple of months ago, about 2 years after I was given Cipro. My doctors were treating me like a pill-seeker, and insisting that I was suffering only from “progression of fibromyalgia” and “anxiety”. I could not tolerate oral magnesium, so used magnesium oil and epsom salt soaks until just the other day, after reintroducing human microbiota to my system I now seem to be able to tolerate oral magnesium again.
I just figured I’d throw the possibility of long-term phototoxicity out there in case anyone wants to pick it up as a subject of inquiry. I haven’t found any information yet on how to separate the FQ once it’s cleaved to our DNA, which as far as I understand it, means it continues to have phototoxic potential.
I’m guessing that normal course of cell death will eliminate the FQs from our systems, but I’m not a biochemist so I just don’t know. These are things we wonder about a lot, though… how to minimize further damage, how long it stays in our system, etc.
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Thanks Michelle for your very pro response. Many doctors are totally clueless about both the dangers of quinolone (I wonder if any ever knows what he/she prescribes!) and most are clueless on FM. They still believe it to be mental here–SoCal. I talked to several people and they swear it is a mental illness… This is good fuel for my fire. 🙂 I have no FM (yet) but I was floxed only I did not know. My floxing showed up in Achilles Tendon partial tear for no reason during one evening’s after dinner slow causal walk. I tiptoed home and the orthopedist said “yep, partial tear” and recommended certain types of shoes that I have already been wearing for 10 years prior. Many doctors are totally clueless about quinolones, including, it seems, my own general doctor as well. I sent him an email writing all the things about this drug class, hoping he would forward the knowledge to his peers but his response was “ok, I added this drug to your allergy list”… duh…
In any case, please read a message way down by chemist Stephen Telfer who posted a link to his medical hypothesis paper (not an experimental paper only a hypothesis) based on his chemical experimenting in lab on the possibility that being floxed may mean getting diabetes II later in life (he too was floxed). I have just downloaded a couple of abstracts from the journal Cell, both discussing insulin sensitivity of the cells. One after magnesium depletion so task #1 is to force magnesium at all times. Task #2 is to chase down these authors and ask for a copy of their papers: “Microbial Modulation of Insulin Sensitivity” by Muhammad Tanweer Khan Max Nieuwdorp Fredrik Bäckhed and the other is more on the lack of proper microbes in our diet from lack of enough insoluble fiber and it is now understood that gut flora and diabetes II are connected so another thing is to see if proper insoluble fiber diet and magnesium supplementing could help us avoid diabetes II. This artile “Starving our Microbial Self: The Deleterious Consequences of a Diet Deficient in Microbiota- Accessible Carbohydrates” by Erica D. Sonnenburg Justin L. Sonnenburg.
I will write both article authors emails and see if they can send me the articles.
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Oh, excellent! I look forward to hearing your thoughts once you get to review their papers.
And, I haven’t even done FMT yet, I just got everything I need to be ready now I’m waiting for my donor to have some free time so I can get her everything she needs… I used human breast milk for my first innoculation of human microbiota, as I was interested in the fact that it also contains stem cells and has anti-inflammatory qualities. I was curious if it would work as well as FMT but could find zero research on it, so used myself as a guinea pig.
I don’t know of a way to test my FM to see if my microbiota profile changes, but I did save a sample from prior to using the breast milk, in case I can find a suitable testing facility in the future.
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I just received the first article I requested “Starving our Microbial Self: The Deleterious Consequences of a Diet Deficient in Microbiota-Accessible Carbohydrates” and will start reading with fresh mind in the morning. More info on that later. 🙂 I think I am already brain dead for tonight… have a nice one!
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Just received the second one as well! 🙂 Very quick responses! Truly awesome! Lots to read tomorrow.
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The fluoroquinolone drugs can definitely cause debilitating adverse reactions. After taking six 500mg tablets of ciprofloxacin in March 2013 I was left temporarily crippled (in addition to experiencing tinnitus, insomnia, vision problems, weakened fingernails and fasciculations, among several other symptoms). It is at least possible that the drugs are inducing an intracellular magnesium deficiency and that this is the root cause of the syndrome (although more complex explanations of the effects have been offered). After taking magnesium chloride and antioxidant supplements for about 18 months, I have almost recovered. This experience was so devastating that it became inconceivable to me that the drugs could not be causing systematic damage in everyone who took them, so I did a little research (I have a Ph.D. in chemistry from Cambridge University). There is a very interesting correlation between rates of fluoroquinolone prescription and the incidence of diabetes (which is correlated with magnesium deficiency). I recently wrote an article about this — see http://www.medical-hypotheses.com/article/S0306-9877(14)00217-5/abstract.
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Wow Stephen!!! Just wow! Thank you for the information. I sure will be reading this article you linked to and which I have just downloaded! Are you detailing the actual chemical/metabolic process in your paper or just reporting a correlation? I would be very curious of the metabolic connection! I wondered originally (before you mentioned magnesium) if the problem is the liver that metabolizes (or tried to metabolize) this drug and remove the toxin but can only place it away similarly to how it handles fructose and so that would explain diabetes II to me but not magnesium. I will try to read it tonight and see what questions I come up with! Thanks for your comment!
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Tequin was taken off the market because of the rise of sugar issues!
I was already floxed when a good friend of mine got an infection on his arm by a bite. He was given Tequin. I told him not to take it but he didn’t listen to me. He also had polycystic kidney disease and had one kidney transplant. He was very sick from the Tequin but at that time the sugar problem was not known. He passed away a few years later. I always wonder what that Tequin did to him.
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Wow, I am sure Tequin had its share in that! But of course no one will know now. Glad that drug is no longer on the market! I am wondering why Cipro still is! It and several others in this class should be pulled from the market!
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We now know not to mix steroids with fluoroquinolones, but what do steroids mentioned do to your bones?
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Good2know, you are very right. I did not mention anything about how bad those are–and not just for your bones! You actually are likely to become dependent on having to take them for life if you took them for more than 2 weeks. But that is another subject to address in a separate blog article on its own! It is worthy an entire coverage and not just a side message! One of these days I will write a blog up on that as well! Thank you for your message and reminder! 🙂
Hugs,
Angela
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Reblogged this on Floxie Hope and commented:
This post by Angela Stanton, Ph.D. is an excellent summary of the dangers of fluoroquinolones. Please check it out!
Thanks,
Lisa
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Thanks for the reblogging Lisa!
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This is a letter written by Dr Jay Cohen, who has studied adverse reactions to Fluoroquinolones for many years. He sent it to the U.S. Senate earlier this year
Jay S. Cohen M.D. http://medicationsense.com 1337 Camino Del Mar Suite C Del Mar, CA 92014 Phone: 858.345.1760 Fax: 858.509.8944
Fluoroquinolone Toxicity Syndrome: A Letter to the Senate Committee on Health, Education & Labor
May 9, 2014
To: The United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Re: Fluoroquinolone Toxicity Syndrome (FTS)
Dear Senators:
Serious adverse reactions to fluoroquinolone antibiotics (FQs) have been reported in medical journals and to the FDA since the 1980s. Although the FDA has increased the warnings on these drugs (Levaquin, Cipro, Avelox, Floxin, Norfolk, Factive), my analysis of FDA data shows that reports continue to climb in number. As of February 2014, approximately 45,000 individual cases of fluoroquinolone toxicity have been reported to the FDA. And, as studies have proven, the FDA receives reports of only 1%-5% of the actual numbers of adverse reactions that occur.
I have been following these medications for 16 years and have evaluated in person or by telephone consultation more than 400 people injured by FQs. In 2001, I published an article, Peripheral Neuropathy with Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics, in the Annals of Pharmacotherapy. This article described 45 cases of severe neurological symptoms such as tingling, numbness, burning pain, twitching, and/or severe weakness. Moreover, 93% of the subjects sustained injuries to other vital systems: agitation, impaired cognitive function, intractable insomnia, hallucinations, psychosis, acute manic episode, joint or muscle pain, or tendon rupture. In many cases, toxicities also involved the cardiovascular and gastrointestinal systems, skin, and sight or hearing. Overall, the majority of my subjects experienced toxicity to multiple body systems. Hence my coining the term Fluoroquinolone Toxicity Syndrome.
Of greatest concern, the majority of my cases had lasted more than 1-2 years and were ongoing. These severe, long term reactions occurred in a generally young and healthy population. The average patient age was 42, many of them athletes. In fact, top athletic organizations now warn athletes to avoid treatment with FQs.
Because of the impaired healing seen in severe FTS patients, we have long suspected genetic injury from FQs. These drugs were designed to injure the genetic structure of bacteria and thereby kill them, and they are very efficient in doing so. However, testing was never performed to ensure that FQs did not also injure human DNA. A recent study using high performance liquid chromatography with mass spectrometrography has demonstrated that FQs do indeed injure human DNA. Further study on this must now be undertaken.
There is no doubt that fluoroquinolones are important medications that help many thousands of people each year, but the indiscriminate prescribing of these highly potent, “big gun” antibiotics for everyday minor infections such as sinusitis, sore throats, or bladder infections is unnecessary and medically negligent. Medical authorities have repeatedly denounced the overuse of FQs. In my 40+ years in pharmacovigilance, FQs surpass Vioxx and thalidomide in the degree of permanent harm done.
FDA warnings currently describe many of the adverse effects of FQs. Recently the FDA has finally acknowledged that FQs can cause permanent injury. However, FDA warnings do not adequately describe the FTS syndrome, so doctors do not consider FTS and instead waste valuable time and expense testing for rare neurologic or rheumatologic disorders, meanwhile discounting or dismissing patients who are suffering severely from FTS. The warnings must be improved and the word about FTS must be spread nationally and worldwide. It can start with you. If you still doubt what I have written here, please examine the extensive literature on FQs toxicity beginning with the articles cited below.
Jay S. Cohen M.D. has been a faculty member at the University of California, San Diego, for three decades and has published more than 20 articles on drug safety in leading medical journals. Based on his articles and books, the FDA chose him as the keynote speaker at a FDA conference in 2004. He has debated FDA officials on drug safety strategies at conferences for the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics and at the Drug Industry Association. His work has been highlighted in major newspapers and magazines including the New York Times, Newsweek and others. During the anthrax scare of 2001, Dr. Cohen’s article on FQs and his appearance on National Public Radio led the CDC to withdraw its recommendation for Cipro for treating anthrax exposure in favor of other, safer antibiotics.
Important Articles on FTS:
Mayo Clinic. Hall MM, Finnoff JT, Smith J. Musculoskeletal complications of fluoroquinolones: Guidelines and precautions for usage in the athletic population. PM & R (Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation) 2011,Feb;3(2):132 142.
Cohen JS. Peripheral Neuropathy with Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics. Annals of Pharmacotherapy 2001, Dec;35(12):1540 47.
Melhus A. Fluoroquinolones and tendon disorders. Expert Opinion on Drug Safety 2005 Mar;4(2):299 309.
Kim GK, Del Rosso JQ. The risk of fluoroquinolone induced tendinopathy and tendon rupture: What does the clinician need to know. Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic 2010, Apr;3(41):49 54.
Williams RJ, Attia E, et al. The effect of ciprofloxacin on tendon, paratendon, and capsular fibroblast metabolism. American Journal of Sports Medicine 2000, Jun;28:364 369.
Kaleagasioglu F, Olcay E. Fluoroquinolone induced tendinopathy: etiology and preventive measures. Tohoku Journal of Experimental Medicine 2012, 226:251-258.
Adikwu E, Brambaifa N. Ciprofloxacin induced chondrotoxicity and tendinopathy. American Journal of Pharmacology and Toxicology 2012, Oct;7:94 100.
Tsai WC, Yang YM. Fluoroquinolone associated tendinopathy. Chang Gung Medical Journal 2011, Sep/Oct;34(5):461-7.
Khaliq Y, Zhanel GG. Musculoskeletal injury associated with fluoroquinolone antibiotics. Clinical Plastic Surgery 2005, 32:495?502
Gürbay A, Gonthier B, Signorini-Allibe N, Barret L, Favier A, Hincal F. Ciprofloxacin induced DNA damage in primary culture of rat astrocytes and protection by Vitamin E. Neurotoxicology 2006 Jan;27(1):6-10.
Corps AN, Harrall RL, Curry VA, et al. Ciprofloxacin enhances the stimulation of matrix metalloproteinase 3 expression by interleukin1beta in human tendon derived cells. A potential mechanism of fluoroquinolone induced tendinopathy. Arthritis and Rheumatism 2002, Nov;46(11):3034-40.
Pouzaud F, Bernard B K, The M, et al. In vitro disinhibition of fluoroquinolones’ toxicity on tendon cells: involvement of oxidative stress. Journal of Pharmacology And Experimental Therapeutics 2003, Oct;308:402.
Shakibaei M, de Souza P, van Sickle D, Stahlmann R. Biochemical changes in Achilles tendon from juvenile dogs after treatment with ciprofloxacin or feeding a magnesium deficient diet. Archives of Toxicology 2001 Aug;75(6):369-74.
Biundo JJ Jr, Mipro RC Jr, Fahey P. Sports related and other soft tissue injuries, tendinitis, bursitis, and occupation related syndromes. Current Opinion in Rheumatology 1997, Mar;9(2):151-4.
Dr. Cohen is an Associate (Voluntary) Professor of Preventive Medicine and Psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego, one of the top 20 universities in America. His work in the area of preventing medication side effects has been widely published and is recognized nationally. If you would like Dr. Cohen’s input on your EM, he is available for office or telephone consultations. He charges a fee for his time, just as he charges people with other medical conditions who come to his office or consult with him from around the world. For information, contact Leslie at 858-345-1760 or schle@att.net.
NOTE TO READERS: The purpose of this E-Letter is solely informational and educational. The information herein should not be considered to be a substitute for the direct medical advice of your doctor, nor is it meant to encourage the diagnosis or treatment of any illness, disease, or other medical problem by laypersons. If you are under a physician’s care for any condition, he or she can advise you whether the information in this E-Letter is suitable for you. Readers should not make any changes in drugs, doses, or any other aspects of their medical treatment unless specifically directed to do so by their own doctors.
If you find this article informative, please tell your friends, family members, colleagues, and doctors about http://www.MedicationSense.com and the free MedicationSense E-Newsletter.
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Oh wow. Thanks Debbie. If you don’t mind, I will copy-paste this comment with the email on it and create a blog article just with that so people can read the scientific evidence behind this and also the attempt at starting to awake the FDA and the congress. I think these are very important steps and I am grateful that you incorporated it here so those with second thoughts can be ensured that it is indeed a big problem. I believe in grassroots movement. If people become knowledgeable and refuse any of the medications in this class, the pharmaceutical company will take note as will the FDA. If all else fails, that option will work! This will help in starting the bottom up approach! Thank you!
Hugs,
Angela
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Thank you for writing this article, much appreciated. 2008 I took Avelox and almost immediately I went into rapid AFib, spent a month onthe cardiac care unit. I stayed in AFib for 18 months with a constant heart rate about 168′ I couldn’t breathe, walk or do anything. I went from normal kidney function to stage 3 and I have MUGUS. for the rest of my life I will be monitored by a hematologist and nephrologist. This occurred in the first week. Since then, I have a hearing loss in both ears and tinnitus. In 2013 all the ligaments in my foot stretched out and I had extensive foot reconstruction. In addition to all that I have neuropathy, vision problems and memory problems. It is beyond my comprehension that this group of drugs is continued and given out.
I am grateful I’m alive and try to stay focused on that. Thank you again.
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I totally agree! Well let the fight start to have this class of drugs removed! It starts by everyone who got hurt in any way filing a complaint at the FDA consumer complaint site. I provided a direct link to the PDF for download in a couple of blogs after this one. If the FDA suddenly gets bombarded with complaints, they will have to reconsider. I looked at their records and they show for the quarter ending 1800 reports of adverse side effects on cipro and its generic combined. I did not look at the other drugs in the same class yet but 1800 each quarter is 7000 a year. That is really not going to kick on their radar… We know that there are a lot more injuries but people do not know that when they get an Achilles Hills tendon problem that it is from the drug! And when they get other issues akin to fibromyalgia, that that too may be related to this drug class! They don’t know. And so the complaints don’t go in! And that is the problem!
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I’m in the UK and 18months out from being poisoned by Levofloxacin. I had a suspected chest infection (never tested) and could have been prescribed other antibiotics first but wasn’t. I have Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia, so am susceptible to infections and it was my specialist Cancer nurse who recommended to my GP that she give me Levo. My GP had never prescribed it before and was unaware of the dangers and contraindication (she is now and has been a great support).I take a daily NSAID for Rheumatoid Arthritis, was over 60 years old, took the steroid Prednisolone a week prior to the Levo and then when I was even more unwell after the 3rd tablet, my GP prescribed Prednisolone again. Immediately my legs started aching and my back pain was much worse than usual. I cried continuously, for no reason for 3 days. Meanwhile the general leg pain moved to my calves and then down to my Achilles, where it stayed and I realised I might have a problem with the antibiotic. It still took a day or two to sink in and I took 18 x 500mg tablets over 9 days. I have never known such intense pain; it spread to my ankles and feet and I was bedridden for the next 5 months. I was unable to walk – I could only shuffle, sliding my feet slowly on the wooden floor and only then to go to the bathroom. I took lots of liquid morphine. I had an ultrasound a couple of months later and there was thickening of the fascia on my feet and the Achilles looked unusual; the radiologist asked me if I was a regular runner or walker, as this was a common cause for such damage. I laughed, as I have never been a regular walker and certainly have never jogged! I went to a Physiotherapist but everything got worse, so I stopped and in the end I just continued to rest and move a little when I was able. I am very much improved now and can walk for about 30 minutes. My tendons ache all the time but nothing like they used to and I suffer from terrible insomnia now and the COPD which I have had for a few years, has worsened. Thank you for writing this; it is so good that awareness is spreading but not so much in the UK.
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Debbie, I am very sorry to hear. Have you filed a complaint with the FDA? You can do that from the UK–I saw today complaints being filed from the UK on Cipro as I looked at the quarterly report. The link to where you need to download the PDF is two blogs after this one! Click on the link and save the PDF on your computer or print it out and fax it in or mail it in. Make sure you use the full name “Levofloxacin” else it will not get anywhere… We need everyone hurt to file a complaint!! Hugs and hope you recover!! Take magnesium. I learned from 2 specialists now that the quinolone drugs take massive magnesium out of the body and from all cells. So supplement with magnesium! I do now and my Achilles Tendon problem is almost gone! 🙂
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Thanks for your response. However, as I am a British citizen living in the UK, I can’t blame the FDA for me being prescribed Levofloxacin, so I wouldn’t make a complaint to them.
What I did as soon as it was clear I was having an adverse reaction, was to make a complaint to the MHRA (Medical and Health Regulatory Authority), under their Yellow Card Scheme. This is our equivalent to the FDA. My GP also reported my reaction to them as a ‘severe and significant event’ and I also reported to the dispensing Pharmacy; they report directly to the drug company.
I am not asking for FQs to be banned – that won’t happen and it is clear that there is a place for them. I want them to be prescribed as they should be eg., as a last resort and never as a first defence. There is a directive in the UK, stating that they should never be used unless everything else has failed and only then when the infection has been properly identified…..but the doctors just aren’t aware of this!
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Actually you can Debbie. The FDA approved the drug based on their safety standards and made it available around the world as a “safe drug” which all other nations believe since they have no right actually to test it! So you did the right thing by filing a complaint in the UK but you also should file in the US. Like I noted earlier, I found many complaints from the UK in the complaints database of the FDA so it is a good thing to do! As for banning the drug: there are many other drugs with way less issues and also way fewer drug resistant bugs–this drug class is strongly resisted by the majority of the bugs. It is not needed that we use this unless it is a life/death situation and all else failed.
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Thanks for the information about making a complaint in the US too.
Yes, I’ve always said, as does the directive in the UK, that FQs should only be used in a life or death situation, where all else has failed. However, on my insistence, my medical notes state in bold, that I must never be given any Quinolone again – fingers crossed on that one.
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I’m floxied, in the UK. Cipro given to me as a PROPHYLACTIC during chemo. It is in the protocols dictated by the local health authority. Tendons and twitching – painful to type this. Can only walk a few hundred yards.
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Oh I am so sorry Alan! Isn’t there another kind of antibiotics they can give you? The tendons will get better–mine was a partial tear in the Achilles that healed after a ton of magnesium and not walking much d=for a few months. The twitching is still there but that does not hurt–albeit it is noisy! But I am concerned that you may also get a tendon tear–so do not walk while on this drug!! And I am concerned of the peripheral neuropathy! See if they can change given your side effect and the double black box warning on all fluoroquinolones like Cipro! Here is the first black box warning in 2008 and the one in 2013 plus a pdf link that contains all new info that you can print out to give to your chemo doc. I believe this contains all info on 4 pages. Good luck and I wish you no more injuries!!!
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I’m not taking the cipro now, the effects only appeared about three months after I had stopped taking the chemo (which was totally ineffective, btw). The onset was insidous – just a bit of stifness. Now, whilst the cancer remains stable (I think, due to my “alternative” therapy) and gives me no symptoms, I am in a deal of pain from the cipro.
I was referred to a specialist rheuma doctor – one whose research has in the past been on fqs. I got the report today. He has ordered a whole bunch of tests, to exclude other causes, but has put down “possible fq toxicity”. He offered no management advice, or treatment except a steroid injection (which I refused) and NSAIDs. It seems although he knows the technical issues (upregulation of MMP etc) he has no knowledge of the “hive mind” experience of floxies which indicate quite clearly those two drugs are to be avoided at all costs!
What’s the state of knowledge about the UVA photosensitvity? When I was taking cipro, I was also sunbathing….did that increase the toxicity? Does it mean that I should avoid the sun in future?
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Hi Alan. The UV (A+B) sensitivity does not mean sun. Any light you see is UV and both A and B are harmful in terms of activating the process that damages mitochondrial DNA. The pharmacists just say to avoid excessive sun but that is old story… Up until a few years ago we did not even have broad spectrum sun coverage in our sun protective lotions! UV means broad spectrum and so even light from your window–and light from your light bulb!–can start the process.
The problem it causes need not show up right away! My Achilles tendon problem showed up several months after I took Cipro and I now have a mild form of peripheral neuropathy–I feel the electrical vibration in my legs–so far only time to time and mild. So more issues will show their ugly face as the time goes on. Very sorry about the chemo not working for your tumor–that happens when they are using the wrong type of chemo… did they get a genetic type on the tumor before they jumped on treating it?
I have the petition at the FDA for the removal of quinolones from easy prescription access and just allow them for life and death. Comments from the public are welcome on the petition–it is open for comments. http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=FDA-2014-P-1753 There are 3 here–all 3 are the same. One was emailed and the other 2 send by snail mail as they requested 2 copies by mail… There is one comment already but I cannot read the comment. The more comments the better—both for an against the argument is good. To read my petition, please click on any of the actual dockets and it will allow you to download the PDF file to read it.
I hope your Cipro floxed will not get any worse!
Hugs,
Angela
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I’ll reply further up the thread, the text is getting too narrow!
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Where I live (52N), the sun is normally behind two layers of 6mm glass! That means only about 10% of UVA makes it through, and absolutely zero UVB. Most of the year it’s not strong enough outside to make even a minimal amount of Vitamin D. Further south, of course, things are different.
When I was diagnosed with cancer (mesothelioma, btw) I already had some knowledge of the rather hidden fact that sun exposure reduces cancers, except skin cancers, but people living in southern latitudes had a lower incidence of ALL cancers. This year, papers have been published suggesting possible mechanisms for the anti-cancer action, which seem to infer that Vitamin D is the key. One theory is that the VitD binds with copper in the tumour and causes a cytotoxic action in-situ. So, during the “downtime” of chemo, I sunbathed. So far as the cancer goes, no progression since my diagnosis.
These are the tests my tendon expert has ordered
Ultrasound ankles
ESR
Full blood count
25OH Vitamin D
CRP
Total CK
Ana (Elisa) Ena, DNA, Centromere
Rheumatoid factor
X rays
Cylcic Citrullinated Peptide Ab
I wonder why VitD – the others look like an exlusion process to eliminate the various types of arthritis.
I understand your point about the different types of damage done by UV activated cipro and non-activated. Needless to say, for me, the cipro damage is done, although so far, it only seems to be tendon issues (fingers painfully crossed). What I’d be interested in knowing is what does it imply for the future? Will I have to regard myself as photo-sensitive from now on? Does the FQ ever leave the system?
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Hi Alan, I hope this answer will not be getting narrower and narrower…
Vitamin D test may be done to check your level of parathyroid action and calcium level in your blood. CRP would be for general inflammation in the body to see if you have an immune response (non-specific). The ultrasound for your ankles sounds like Achilles tendon check to me! Rheumatoid factor checks that if the CRP came in positive, would it be because of arthritis… I appreciate the test for Ana (Elisa) Ena, DNA, Centromere because this could be specific to quinolones to see if the DNA is damaged. Mind you the centromere is with respect to cell replication so the doc may be checking to see if there is a problem with the length of the centromere. ESR is also for inflammation caused by auto immune diseases. The doc is checking the right things I believe. Whether the conclusion will be meaningful is another questions. After all there are no test (yet) for quinolones caused damage. Our body has so many bacteria on it and inside each cell mitochondria (yet another bacteria) can only be tested by biopsy. If your tendon is affected, he would need the biopsy from your tendon.
As for the permanence of the affect of the UV light; the answer is unknown. The drug is no longer in your system. It made you photo sensitive during the time in which you took it and a few days after until it completely exited your system. Whether the problems caused also means that some of the drug permanently remains in the body remains to be discovered. I do not doubt that it is a possibility but cannot say it is. After all, when we get vaccinated against a pathogen even if the pathogen is no longer with us, our body stands guard. So it is possible that the “quinolones pathogen” is no longer with you (us) but the immune system is on guard making us photo sensitive for life. This is a great question to be explored once the drug is off the shelves… The moment it is pulled, work can begone on the rescue of the ill but not until since officially this disease does not exist until it is proven to exist and the drug is pulled from the shelves.
Sorry to hear about your cancer. I hope you have taken part of the class action lawsuit that provides benefits to you! I see that lawsuit every day on TV. I hope you received your share and are well taken care of financially!
Best wishes–I will be leaving the country in a few days so if I don’t respond, it means I have no internet. I will respond then later.
Cheers,
Angela
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Gosh.. better start a new post next time Alan!
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Sorry, but you are wrong on UV being “broad spectrum”. It’s “light” with a wavelength below about 400 nanometres, described as UVA (longer) and UVB(shorter). UVA and UVB have different effects on the skin. Normal glass pretty much blocks all UV light.
The reason I asked about the latest research was that I found papers that discussed to use of UV to degrade FQ’s, for example, in animal slurry before disposal. It seemed to me, that the papers were saying that the breakdown of FQ under UV produced directly cytotoxic compounds. If this is the case, it might be why so many of those suffering and writing about their experiences are those that were out in the sun, jogging and exercising whilst taking the FQ. Just a thought, need to research a bit more….
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Sorry to say this Alan that I wish you were right. Please read two articles I link you to here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultraviolet about what UV light is (both A and B are incorporated when I say UV) and then whether they cross common glass: http://www.drbaileyskincare.com/blog/do-uv-sun-rays-go-through-windows/ shall do–UV A crosses glass and that is the bad one for quinolones. Your regular light bulb you use for reading has UV rays that can cause issues as well, depending on how “white light” it is. I explain.
There are several studies under way on how UV light (A and/or B) affects and what. The article titled “Inhibition of Human Topoisomerase II alpha by Fluoroquinolones and Ultraviolet A Irradiacation” with the first sentence in the abstract “Some fluoroquinolone antibiotics (FQs) become toxic and mutagenic upon exposure to ultraviolet radiation (UV).” Perrone et al., Toxicological Sciences 69, 16-22 (2002) tells it all. UV B are those rays you get when you burn and A is what you get even in cloud-covered skies that is more dangerous. This article targets A only in which dose variation and UVA variations modulated the extent of the damage by inhibiting topoisomerase II alpha. Topoisomerase II usually cut the DNA strands to manage its coiling up. Thus the DNA damage is not by toxicity but by mutation. It changes how the DNA works and what it becomes. Note that the link I sent to you about UV light coming through the window is UV A… the very light causing the damage. It is now also understood that these rays penetrate water up to 3 feet deep. There are also reports of truck drivers who are behind glass all the time to have one side of their face (the window side) shrivel up and get damaged from the UVA light coming through the window.
But even without any UV light whatsoever, fluoroquinolones cause oxidative damage to cells–again, dose and time dependent. To read up on what is depleted and how, read: “Oxidative Stress Induced by Fluoroquinolones on Treatment for Complicated
Urinary Tract Infections in Indian Patients.” V Talla and PR Veerareddy; J Young Pharm. 2011 Oct-Dec; 3(4): 304–309, or read this: “Bactericidal Antibiotics Induce Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Oxidative Damage in Mammalian Cells” Kalghatgi et al., Sci Transl Med. 2013 July 3; 5(192). Both of these articles will tell you that oxidation damages even in the absence of UV light of any kind.
Thus spending time outdoors and getting burned–as many people do while taking drugs from this class–initiate a different damage from just simply taking them. Taking them in the dark causes oxidative damage that may be reversible. Being outdoors and expose the drug to UV light of any kind actually permanently mutates the DNA and that is irreversible–in order to reverse it, the DNA in each mitochondria that was mutated must spontaneously mutate back to its original undamaged form to reverse the damage. This may occur by natural mutation in some cells–some may be critical enough to stop the disabling conditions that follow but this is rare if it exists at all.
Just as you can get sunburned without being on the sun (under clouds, tanning salon) and even using strong “white light” light bulb, which many now prefer, you can induce the UV damage to the DNA.
I hope this helps you clarify your thoughts and questions. These drugs must go since there are no safe environment in which to take them.
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So many people have no idea about the dangers. I took 6 rounds between Sept 2013 – Jan 2014, for chronic sinus infection. THEN was dx with immune deficiency. Tendonitis, depression/anxiety/insomnia, torn wrist ligament and cartilage, Ocular Hypertension, double/triple vision, tunnel vision, pain and swelling in joints, neuropathy, etc — and the Rheumatologist said it was only Fibromyalgia and told me to see a psychiatrist..
Unable to work for the past year. Best vision with glasses 20/80. Trying to get used to scleral contacts, dry eyes making it difficult.
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Wow, you got it all at once Kristy. I am very sorry to hear that! May I ask why you did not seek legal advise? Your case seems to be an immediate connection that is easy to prove. Did you try? Depending on what state you are in, you may still have statutory time to file a legal complaint. Have you tried?
Hugs,
Angela
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Dr. Stanton,
On behalf of Quinolone Vigilance Foundation (www.SaferPills.org) and as its Executive Director, please allow me to say thank you for your insightful and informative article about the dangers of fluoroquinolones. We are grateful that there is more awareness about this important issue and that you referenced our website so others can find more information.
Sincerely,
Rachel Brummert
President/Executive Director
Quinolone Vigilance Foundation
http://www.SaferPills.org
rachel@saferpills.org
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Thank you so much Rachel for your post. I am hoping to take this to the next level by pushing for a way to identify the damage caused specifically by this drug class so we can conclusively say that this is indeed the one since while we know it is, the medical community is quite blind to this. I checked by asking around and most doctors still have no idea how bad it is. Unfortunately many of the adverse effects show up way after we already forgot we took these pills, and so it is extremely hard to point to the drug and attack from a legal perspective until we have a scientific way of showing the connection. We need to put all of our strength and brainpower together to figure out how to convince the science community to develop a method of testing that can connect these adverse effects that turned to illnesses that can be caused by other things as well, to be conclusively caused by this drug class. We need to find an incentive and that is hard to come up with. I will keep in touch with you (by email as well) since I have a few things up my sleeve but I would like to test the waters first.
Best wishes,
Angela
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The Fluoroquinolone Wall of Pain —-facebook
https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Fluoroquinolone-Wall-of-Pain/209182505773463?ref=hl
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Thank you Tami! I just liked that FB page and posted a link there to this blog and also to my FB page https://www.facebook.com/groups/546568605462045/ with the same name cluelessdoctors. The more of us fight, the stronger we are. So I would like to ask that as many of you provide a complaint, a story, anything I can start with to encourage change. Thank you! Hugs,Angela
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Hi Angela,
Thank you so much for writing this! The information, and the way that you presented it, are greatly appreciated! Thank you also for linking to http://www.floxiehope.com! Connections and referrals are very much appreciated! I’ll reblog this article tomorrow if that’s okay with you. (I haven’t reblogged before so I’m not sure how it works. Please let me know if that’s not okay.) I really appreciate that you’re spreading the word about the dangers of fluoroquinolones (cipro, levaquin and avelox are the most popular ones) to your audience! Thank you, thank you!
I want to point out a couple of things to both you and any of your readers who read this comment. First, no one really knows how often adverse reactions to fluoroquinolones occur. The official estimates range from 1% to 20%. That range tells me that those who are measuring it really don’t have a clue how rare the adverse reactions are. You mentioned both tolerance thresholds and delayed reactions – those things make it tricky to determine how frequent adverse reactions occur. Thanks for linking to my B&B post about how FQ reactions are difficult to recognize! Here is another post about how, because of delayed reactions and tolerance thresholds, the assumption that adverse reactions to FQs is “rare” is misguided – http://floxiehope.com/2013/08/09/is-fluoroquinolone-toxicity-rare/. Second, trips to the ER are not a good way to count adverse reactions to fluoroquinolones. Adverse reactions to FQs are typically not the things that you go to the ER for. Still – it’s not really okay for tendons to be slowly damaged, even if it is preferable to anaphylactic shock. Here’s a post about that – http://www.hormonesmatter.com/fluoroquinolone-reactions-beyond-er/
Sorry for being so self-referential!
On a less related note – I saw in your bio that you are interested in hormones. One of the sites that I write for, http://www.hormonesmatter.com, is currently looking for writers. If you’re interested in writing for HM, here is the info on how you can go about being a contributing writer – http://www.hormonesmatter.com/write-for-hormones-matter/
Thanks again and best regards,
Lisa
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Thanks Lisa on your note and also on the lead to hormonesmatter.com. I will definitely check it out to see if they are interested in what I focus on. I totally agree with you that ERs, doctor offices and even clinical trials are not reflecting the actual number of adverse reactions to Fluoroquinolones since often times the reactions happen far removed from taking the drug. If the reaction was immediate and on the spot, like allergy, or fainting or whatever, one can draw the conclusion easily (in terms of a legal argument) that it was that drug that caused it. But as it often happens, many of the injuries happen much later when no one is remembering having taken the drug and he/she does not draw the conclusion that the reaction was caused by the drug. Also, many of the adverse side effects are such that they can also be caused by other things. Legally it is a hard case to attack–hence all the difficult time for all who are sick. This could be a gigantic class action lawsuit if there was a way to prove that all of these injuries–which are listed as side effects actually but are not stated to happen much later than taking the drug–could somehow be connected by some test that can conclusively evaluate that the damage was caused by FQs. I need to work on the research community more than on the legal one in this case since a testing method needs to be done for evaluation.
I am indeed very glad you are sharing additional links because information sharing is the key!
As for re-blogging, on the bottom of the article under “share” there is “WordPress it” which would place it on your WordPress blog if you use WordPress which I think you do. 🙂
I hope you have a wonderful day. I hope I can be of help resolving this puzzle. This article has brought the most number of responses by far and hundreds also on facebook and g+. This tells me I hit a very painful nerve of the community so this is priority #1. 🙂
Hugs,
Angela
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Thanks for writing this article. I have been harmed by FQs as far back as 1994, connected the dots in 1998 after receiving FQs again 2x in 97 and once in 98. Hashimotos Thyroid, high liver functions and fibromyalgia just to name a few health issues. I stayed away from these drugs for 16 years and preached to anyone who would listen not to take them. I was 44 years old back then so doctors couldn’t use “aging” as an excuse although they had no idea what was wrong with me. Fast forward to 3/2013 and I needed an operation. All over my paperwork was NO FQs but the surgeon decided to use the solution form of Floxin in my head. I didn’t know why I was feeling so so sick until I received the op report and there it was in black and white. Floxin soaked gelfoam pledgets! She said there was no way this could have given me all the issues I was experiencing 100x worse than before. I was also given steroids which is a no no with FQs. I have tendon damage all over my body, my eyes are terrible, and the neuropathy is horrible. I am now being told by doctors it is the “aging process” as I am 63. I go from dr to dr like everyone else in the groups, but get no answers.
I do hope your article reaches many people who will think twice before ingesting this poison. It is not a “rare” occurrence as drs state.
What concerns many of us who have used the “topicals” is what could it be doing to kids who constantly get them for ear and eye infections? More research needs to be done on topicals as they are not included for any of the warnings.
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Oh my Sherry, that is terrible. I am sure many doctors have no idea about this drug class at all in terms of how bad and damaging they are–the doctors do not get the black box warning! They just go after their little book (which I also have) that tells them what medications work for what illness but they don’t need to know why or how or what the adverse effects may be other then the most common ones like headaches, etc. I truly believe that doctors need to be re-educated each year of all new information and need to be tested to get their license renewed! I think that may be one way to get them to pay attention! I am sorry about how you feel and I hope there is a sliver of hope for your slow recovery! Hugs, Angela
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I am a victim of a Fluoroquinolone, Levaquin in 2007. Only 10 pills and within just a few days my feet began to feel the first signs of pain leading to a serious case of Peripheral Neuropathy, now a very painful case spread into my legs, hands, & arms. It has disabled me taking my job & nearly everything I own. Originally this medication was given to me for a bronchial infection and there was no black box back then and I was never given any paperwork with the medication. It’s tragic yes and I for one want this to never happen to anyone else, but still IT’S HAPPENING NOW! There are groups of thousands of people online called “Floxies”, those of us, trying to help each other with the same discovered problem, and trying to get the word out. Many times people don’t know that these pills are the cause of their problems because of delayed reactions. It took me a long time to discover the cause, Drs didn’t know. Thank you for this article! May it help others!
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I am so sorry Rose! I hope we can figure out a way to get an end to this mess! I will look around and see what the best way it is to approach this! My goal is to help others with this blog in general. It seems I hit on a nerve with a problem lots of people have and the industry is completely silent about this! I will do my best to publicize this! I hope you have a chance to improve a least to some comfort level! Hugs, Angela
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Not only am I a “floxie”, but I just had a friend that required a defibrillator after be prescribe Avelox. I’m convinced this is what caused my son to need a heart transplant! These drugs should ONLY be used in life or death emergencies!
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Oh my Ms. A. That is horrible! I agree. These drugs should only be used then and actually I would say a very large percent, perhaps as high as 80%, of drugs are not even needed! It is a shame how our pharmaceutical industry is set up!
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Thank you so much for writing this. I was harmed by these antibiotics- prescribed several times over several years for bronchitis or sinus infection. It wasn’t until the last time- three years ago, that I realized they were the cause of many of my other health problems that kept being diagnosed as “fibro” or other things. I have permanent neuropathy and a lot of other permanent damage from these “antibiotics”. And the last two times they were prescribed, they didn’t even cure the infection and I had to be given something else- something not as strong and much safer that should have been tried first!
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Wow Stephanie, I did not know that! Thank you for bringing the issue to my attention. I think I am catching a lot of attention now with it and have alerted all my doctors to read my blog. It is unfortunate that it takes this long to discover what side effects drugs cause (they all cause some!) and it is even more alarming that it is still permitted to prescribe them! If you had the chance to watch 60-Minutes this last Sunday–you probably still can on their website–there is a segment on drugs. That segment is on the expense of cancer drugs but what 60-Minutes brought to the surface shocked me. It went something like this: a month supply of this drug costs $11,000 but I (pharmaceutical) will sell it to you doctor for $6,000 but you charge the patient and the insurance the full $11,000 and I will send you the $5,000 difference! So doctors get paid to prescribe certain medications by some pharmaceuticals. I don;t think that it was as clear to others as to me! I will write a blog about it.
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