Neuropathy And Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics...Again!

Today's very short post from secure.medicalletter.org (see link below) is yet another one concerning this year's 'hot topic' for neuropathy patients - fluoroquinolone antibiotics - which can cause neuropathy. You will need to follow the links to access the main information but considering that doctors across the world are routinely ignoring official warnings about fluoroquinolones and issuing them more commonly than other antibiotics, it's worth arming yourself with the right information.

In Brief: Fluoroquinolones and Peripheral Neuropathy
The Medical Letter on Drugs and Therapeutics • November 11, 2013 (Issue 1429) p. 89

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The FDA is requiring new warnings about peripheral neuropathy in the labeling of all oral and injectable fluoroquinolones. The potential for this class of antibiotics to cause peripheral neuropathy was first identified more than 10 years ago and a warning was added to their labels in 2004. The new warnings are based on a recent review of the FDA’s Adverse Event Reporting System (AERS) database.1
 



The onset of peripheral neuropathy can occur rapidly, often within a few days of starting a fluoroquinolone, and in some patients the disorder may be permanent. Symptoms include pain, tingling, burning, numbness, weakness, and change in sensation to touch, pain, and temperature in the arms and/or legs. If peripheral neuropathy develops in a patient taking a fluoroquinolone, the drug should be stopped and an antibacterial from a different class should be used instead.2

1. FDA Drug Safety Communication: FDA requires label changes to warn of risk for possibly permanent nerve damage from antibacterial fluoroquinolone drugs taken by mouth or by injection. Available at http://www.fda.gov. Accessed November 1, 2013.

2. Drugs for bacterial infections. Treat Guidel Med Lett 2013; 11:65.

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