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Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics
(Avelox, Cipro, Floxin,
Levaquin) Leave A Terrible
Trail of Woe and Intrigue
Joe Graedon

May 26, 2014

Drug Side Effects

31 Comments
Americans love antibiotics. We tend to think of them as magic bullets,
protecting us from life-threatening infections with almost no downside.
But one kind of antibiotic called fluoroquinolones (FQ, quinolones or
quins for short) has left many patients permanently impaired. Although
most people can take such medications safety, others are left
devastated.

A group called Fluoroquinolone Toxicity 24/7 Forum describes it this

way:
Fluoroquinolonetoxicityhasbeenlikeanatomicbombexplodingintheir
bodiesdamagingtheirmusclesandscramblingtheirDNAtothepointmany
aretoosicktowork,tooweaktowalk.
We first began to suspect something strange was happening with FQs
two decades ago. Thats when a reader of our syndicated newspaper
column shared this experience after taking Floxin:
Itookitforaseveresinusinfectionfollowedbypneumonialastwinter.
Afterthreedaysofuttermiseryandarashonmyback,Istarted
hallucinating.Arethereotherpeoplewhohavehadabadreactiontothis
antibiotic? July, 1994
A few weeks later another reader shared a Floxin story:
Itoosufferedaviolentreactiontothisdrug.Itookitfortwodaysand
becameverynauseated.BythethirddayInotonlyfeltlistless,nervousand
sick,butwhenIwenttobedIcouldntsleepandbeganhavingviolentmulticoloredhallucinations.
Aftertwonightsofalmostnosleep,accompaniedbyhallucinations,Iasked
myphysicianforsomethingelse.Atfirstshewasreluctant,butwhenshe
understoodtherewasnowayIdtakeanymoreFloxin,shegavemea
differentprescription.IthinkFloxinisafrighteningdrugandIhopeyou
willwarnyourreadersthatthesideeffectsofFloxinmaybemorecommon
thanpreviouslythought.
These days some patients who have experienced bad FQ reactions refer

to themselves as Floxies, no doubt because flox is part of the name

of most FQs.
Stephen Fried, author of the book, Bitter Pills: Inside the Hazardous
World of Legal Drugs (published in 1998), used the word Floxed to
describe what happened to his wife Diane after she took the antibiotic
Floxin for a minor urinary tract infection. After just one pill Diane had
trouble talking, became disoriented and began hallucinating. She
suffered serious neurological symptoms that persisted for years.
Over the last 20 years quinolone antibiotics have been prescribed to
millions of Americans, often for relatively minor infections. Here is a list
of common FQs:

Ciprofloxacin (Cipro)
Gemifloxacin (Factive)
Levofloxacin (Levaquin)
Moxifloxacin (Avelox)
Norfloxacin (Noroxin)
Ofloxacin (Floxin)
Physicians seem as awed by antibiotics as patients. Its no wonder.
Drugs like penicillin revolutionized medicine. People who once died from
pneumonia or simple skin infections were cured in a matter of days. We
love antibiotics too. Just read Joes account of how azithromycin helped
him overcome a case of hard-to-treat asthma.
But some antibiotics, like the fluoroquinolones, can cause serious,
sometimes permanent damage for susceptible patients. It took decades
for the FDA to recognize the problem. It wasnt until August 15, 2013,
that the FDA warned physicians that FQs could cause irreversible nerve
damage at any time during treatment, even after only a few doses.

SYMPTOMS OF FQ NERVE DAMAGE:

Pain
Burning
Tingling
Numbness
Weakness
Changes in sensation to light touch, pain or
temperature, or the sense of body position
OTHER FQ SIDE EFFECTS

Digestive distress, nausea, diarrhea, constipation,

stomach pain, heartburn, vomiting
Headache, dizziness
Agitation, anxiety, irritability, restlessness, confusion
Insomnia
Tendon problems, tendinitis, tendon rupture
Retinal detachment
Allergic reactions, skin rash, anaphylaxis (lifethreatening reaction requiring immediate medical
attention!)
Super-infections, including C. diff diarrhea
Hallucinations, psychosis, seizures
Depression, suicidal thoughts or actions
Irregular heart rhythms, torsades de pointes, QT
prolongation
Kidney or liver damage

Blood disorders
Arthritis, muscle pain, weakness
A long list of side effects is usually meaningless. People zone out after
reading just a few symptoms. Drug companies are fully aware of this and
have stopped worrying about listing dozens of serious side effects in
their print ads or on television commercials. Although they once feared
that a litany of serious adverse reactions might scare patients away, the
truth is that most people ignore the scary messages and focus on the
people having fun in the ads. The only way to truly understand the
impact of FQ antibiotics is to read stories from real people:
ItookLevaquinthreeyearsagoforaninfectioninmyleg.Afterthree
weeksoftakingit,Ihadsevereshortnessofbreath,ringinginmyears,pain
walkinganddifficultywalking.Thepainhasneverleft,onlygottenworse.I
canonlywalkorstandforafewminutesatatimebeforehavingtosit.
Ihaveterribleinsomnia,andwithallthemedicalproblems,havehad
troublewithbeinginabadmood,asanyonewouldwithallthispain.The
doctorsaidheneverheardofanyproblemswiththismedication,andacted
totallysurprisedthatIthoughtitcamefromLevaquin.Hewantedtosend
metoarheumatologist,ashesaiditwasntthemeds,butmaybearthritis.
Youdontjustsuddenlygetarthritis! Patricia

IwasprescribedCiproforaUTI(urinarytractinfection).Afterthevery
firstpill(atnight)IdevelopedsuchpaininmyrightlegthatIcouldntwalk
orevenstraightenmyleg.ThenextmorningIimmediatelywenttomy
doctorwhoagreeditwasmostlikelytheCiproandnevertotakeitagain.
J.A.L.

Ciprochangedmylife!Twoyearsagoonday6oftakingahighdoseof
CiproIcouldnolongerwalk,hadroamingpainandburning.Sixmonths
laterIcouldfinallywalkwithoutthefearoffalling.
NowtwoyearslatermylegswillnotsupportmeifItrytostooplowerthan
theheightofachair.IfIdolightexerciseformoreaweekIagainhave
troublewalking.
IfIusemyhandgardeningformorethanashorttimeIlosecontrolofmy
handsifItriedIcouldnotpickupafeatherafterweeding.Yes,Cipro
changedmylife.Doctorstellmenothingotherthantogiveittime.Itfeels
permanent. G.W.

IwasputonLevaquinoverayearago,andsufferedmuchpainwalking.I
didnottakethewholeprescription,butenoughtohavedonethedamage,
whichisstillgivingmemuchpaininmyfeetandlegs.Iseenowthatthis
afflictionwillmostlikelybewithmepermanently.Itoldmydoctorright
awayaboutthispain.Shesaidthatitsoundedliketendonitis,butdidnot
admittomethatitwasmostlylikelyfromtheLevaquinsheprescribed.
K.E.B.

IwasprescribedCiproforaUTI5yearsagoatage53.Itwasa10-day
prescription.WithinafewdaysafterstartingtheRxIstartedgetting
migratingpainsinmyjointsandmuscles.Thebottomofmyfeetstartedto
burnandtingle.Icouldntstandhavinganythingonmyfeetortheywould
feelliketheywereonfire.MylegmusclesgotsoweakIcouldntstandfor
anylengthoftime.Therewereotherthingstoo,Ifeltjustawful.

Icalledtheprescribingphysician,whotoldmethesewerenormalside
effectsandwoulddisappearonceIfinishedtheprescription.Well,they
didntgoaway.Itonlygotworse.OvertheensuingweeksIsuddenly
developedarthritisinbothofmyhands,wrists,kneesandfeet.Myknees
cracklebadlynowwhenIbendthemandfeellikeIhavesandinthem.I
havetowearorthoshoes.IneverhadonebitofarthritisbeforeItookthis
drug.
MydoctorwouldneveracknowledgethatCipromayhavebeenafactorin
thesuddendevelopmentofalloftheseproblems.Iwenttoarheumatologist
whothinksIprobablyhavemildRAnowandputmeonprescriptionantiinflammatories.Theyhelp.
Ialsosawaneurologist.Heranabunchofneurotests,whichwereall
normal.HewastheonlyonewhoacknowledgedthatCiprocouldhave
playedafactor.Nowitsfiveyearslater.Someoftheissueshaveimproved.
Thearthritishasnotimproved.Imstuckwithitnowforlife. M.D.

Ihavebeensufferingforover16years.Nodoctorbelievedit.Ihaveevery
sideeffectmentioned.Thenunfortunatelyafterstayingawayfromthis
classofdrugsfor16years,mysurgeonfeltthattheFloxinsolutionsheput
inmyheadduringanervedecompressionwouldnotharmme.Shewas
quitewrong.IhavebeensoverysicksincethenandIammucholdernowso
itishardertoconvincedoctorsthatitisnotmyage.
Everybone,muscle,tendonandnervehurts.Mypanicattackscameback
fullforceandmyeyesaresoblurry.Brainfog,memoryproblemsandtrying
tofinishasentenceisdisturbingaswell.Mystomachproblemsareworse
thanever.
Thanksforthearticle.UsFloxiesappreciateit!Sherry

As mentioned above, most patients tolerate fluoroquinolones reasonably

well. But a surprisingly large number of people are susceptible to serious
side effects. Doctors are not quite sure why some individuals are
vulnerable to neurological complications, tendon tragedies and
inflammatory reactions.
We need a better understanding of the underlying mechanism behind FQ
harm. Even with such awareness, we may not be able to predict who will
react badly to medications like Ciprofloxacin or levofloxacin.
Patients and physicians must be aware of the early warning signs of
fluoroquinolone toxicity. No patient should begin a course of treatment
without a clear understanding of danger signals such as strange
psychological symptoms or pain, burning, tingling, numbness and
weakness.
Here is a link to the Fluoroquinolone Toxicity 24/7 Forum.
Share your own FQ story below. We want to know both the pros and
cons of such drugs. Let others know about your experience.

Tampa, FL Residents Are `Rattled` By New

Website

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TAGS: Cipro, Floxin, Fluoroquinolones, Levaquin, side effects

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31 Thoughts Shared

ADD MY THOUGHTS

Reply
JIM BERTHOLDT

CHICAGO

OCTOBER 28, 2014 AT 2:20 PM

Ive experienced side affects to several different

FQ antibiotic drugs, namely severe diarrheaI have a

chronic colitis condition that is controlled by prescribed

drugsbut my doctors do not seem to prescribe meds
with no side effects when antibiotics are neededany
suggestions?

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