URGENT QUESTION RE FLOROQUINOLONES

Those who are benzodiazepine-dependent or in benzodiazepine withdrawal have a higher rate of adverse severe CNS effects possibly due to fluoroquinolones' displacement of benzodiazepines from their receptor site or pre-existing GABA underactivity due to withdrawal, thus leading to an increased sensitivity to fluoroquinolone toxicity.[41][42][43][44] A

 

I AM NOT IN WITHDRAWL AT THE PRESENT TIME ,BUT I DO HAVE NUEROPATHY (IN MY FEET NO DR KNOWS WHY)AND I HAVE A SERIOUS UTI INFECTION.WONDERING IF ITS OK TO TAKE CIPROFLOXACIN AS THERE ARE FEW ANTIBIOTICS TO CURE THIS.

THE ABOVE IS A QUOTE FROM WIKIPEDIA -ANYBODY HAVE ANY IDEA IF THE DRUG IS SAFE TO TAKE ?OR AT LEAST SMALL RISK.ANY IDEAS WOULD BE HELPFUL

Katy, Unfortunately, I have no idea.. though someone will chime in.  Patty

It it were me I would try to find anything other than a floroquinolone.  You might not have a reaction at all, but I would not be willing to chance it. I was given levaquin while on benzos, this was at the time I didn't even know what a benzo was. I had a bad reaction, insomnia, rash, tremors.

 

Here is a thread about UTI's , maybe you can read about what has worked for others.

 

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=55122.0

I was given Keflex (similar to Amoxicillin) when I had a stent put in my right kidney (due to kidney stones).  They were going to prescribe Cipro (to prevent any urinary infection), but I asked the doctor to change it and he changed it to Keflex.  I just didn't want to take the chance of taking Cipro.

 

Sincerely,

 

fg

An old member here was thrown into CT wd by taking a quinalone. He was on 4 mgs of klon for ten years and he went through a drastic withdrawal. The antibiotics shut out the benzo so you are in a ct situation.

Please find another drug to take.

 

 

Here's an old post on Fluoroquinolones:

 

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=36633.0

 

Sincerely,

 

fg

Katy,

 

As someone who has experience with UTIs (that's actually my old thread pianogirl referenced), I would have to say that there are actually a variety of non-fluoroquinolone antibiotics for UTIs.  I'm not sure if you have other antibiotic allergies i.e. penicillin, but I've seen a number of other antibiotics mentioned on here to treat UTIs.  It seems to me that doctors may not always be aware of all of them as quinolones are becoming more and more of a first-line treatment for UTIs (something I am not happy about), but they do exist.

 

Personally I will never take a fluoroquinolone even when I'm recovered simply because of some of the horror stories I've read about them, but that's just me.

Katy, I'm coping a post from Laura2010 about this subject. I'll just leave it all in so I don't take it out of context. I find it very helpful.

Flip

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

Hi Sarah Joy 

 

Sorry you are having an UTI that is a sucker LOL. I know you asked Flip about the list of ABs and I see our lovely Flip isn't online now. I know that she won't be upset with me if I post it for her. 

 

**The antibiotics which can cause problems are the following all quinolones/fluoroquinolones. There are a dozen or so fluoroquinolones marketed around the world. Also some people have problems with these two macrolide antibiotics azithromycin and clarithromycin. Erythromycin seems not to have effects on the nervous system and it is in the macrolide family.

 

Remember that brand names can vary from country to country but generic and drug family names tend to be the same world wide.

 

Fluroquinolones

 

generic - brand

 

ciprofloxacin - ciproxin, cipro

 

Levofloxacin - levaquin

 

Moxifloxacin - avelox

 

ofloxacin - floxin

 

NOTE - All fluoroquinolone can cause serious problems in recovery. They can even adversely effect "normal healthy" people. Their side effect profile is controversial. We have had several members have serious side effects and one who had life threatening epileptic seizures from the fluoroquinolones.

 

Nitrofurantoin

 

Brand names

 

Furadantin

 

Macrobid

 

Macrodantin

 

Nitro Macro

 

Urantoin

 

We have had one report of a bad reaction to this drug. It is preferable to a quinolone but if you have an alternative option it may be worth avoiding this antibiotic.

 

Macrolides - Erythromycin doesn't seem to cause people problems in withdrawal and doesn't seem to effect the nervous system however two drugs in the macrolide family can cause central nervous system effects and have been reported as causing problems. These include:-

 

Generic - brand

 

azithromycin - Zithromax

 

clarithromycin - Biaxin

 

Ask the doctor for a culture before accepting the AB. I took bactrim unnecessarily because I had all the symptoms of UTI for over a week but the culture showed not infection.  This may be just w/d. I found a lot of relieve in apple cider vinegar ( the raw one). Also when the pain was terrible I drank water with a teaspoon of baking soda, I know, yuck big time but it kills the burning pain in minutes because alkalize the urine fast.   

 

 I hope you feel better soon Sarah.

 

Love you, you too Flip!!!

 

Laura

 

recovering I hear you

I am not sure i have a choice -it is e-coli and I tried macrobid-I have nueropathy -and it was horrible -I may be allergic to penicillen -I am def allergic to clauvalin- and I am now tryig a sulfa drug -its horiible -maybe i should just try the amoxocillen and see if my body react-

e- coli  in the urinary tract leaves few choices

-quinolones work -but thanks for the warning-

I will stick with the sulpha drug or amoxocillen ==the sulpha drug is nasty and hard on the liver ----all are bad

 

-there arent a lot of choices with e-coli

if you have nay ideas let me know'

I have a fatty liver so I dont wanna die ---and amoxocillen is almost resistant to this bug

help

 

Hi Katy,

 

I was given Cipro back in April this year for a UTI while at the ER.  That's not the reason I went to the ER but since I missed my doctor's appt. that day about the UTI due to the ER visit, I asked them to take a urine sample.  I always read the pamphlet and read some things of concern but like a dummy figured what could go wrong with an antibiotic.  I had a horrible reaction and happened to be at the beginning of my 1st attempt of tapering from Klonopin.  It was as if I was having severe w/d sxs.  On 2nd day I felt really bad, 3rd day I was worsening so I stopped taking it.  Because I've had so many bad reactions in the last year of my life to prescriptions, I got on the internet to check out this drug and was horrified at what I read about quinoline drugs.  It's not even a 1st line drug used to treat UTI!  Some people taking them have developed disabling illnesses.  There are lawsuits out from those who have taken it.  It's also not safe to take them with NSAIDS which I was taking at the time because they have the same reaction towards the GABA receptors as when taken with benzos (which I found out then and stopped the NSAIDS and went to Tylenol only).

 

I scheduled a follow up appt. with my doctor to get another antibiotic and when I shared with him what I read about the quinolines he told me I need to stop reading stuff online.  Can you believe that ?!?  I've been going to this doctor for years and always trusted him but his ethics in the last year of what he has been prescribing me have me questioning him as a doctor.  These doctors push all of these drugs on patients in an effort to help support Big Pharma.  They both work together to help each other out.  Here's what I found through one of the sites in my search.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ciprofloxacin

 

Donna

 

yes i have avoided cipro but fout foud out i am allergic to macrobid,and sulpha and now may have to take regular penicillen=I will never take cipro thks all for responding

Katy, I took 2 doses of Levaquin, a fluoroquinolone, and had horrible cns problems, hence taking the xanax.  Symptoms are as bad, if not worse, as benzo withdrawal.  The fluoroquinolones have been black boxed due to causing tendon ruptures and there are other grave warnings regarding the cns.  These fluoroquinolones affect the GABA receptors so you would definately be taking a HUGE chance of getting worse after ingesting this antibiotic.  They also cause peripheral neuropathy.

 

Patty xo

Katy, I took 2 doses of Levaquin, a fluoroquinolone, and had horrible cns problems, hence taking the xanax.  Symptoms are as bad, if not worse, as benzo withdrawal.  The fluoroquinolones have been black boxed due to causing tendon ruptures and there are other grave warnings regarding the cns.  These fluoroquinolones affect the GABA receptors so you would definately be taking a HUGE chance of getting worse after ingesting this antibiotic.  They also cause peripheral neuropathy.

 

Patty xo

 

Hi Patty,

 

I was just wondering if after taking the 2 doses of Levaquin, did you notice anything other than CNS issues?  I had read that warning on the pamphlet about the tendon rupture and ignored it figuring it couldn't possibly happen.  I took a took a total of 3 days doses (6 pills) before I stopped.  I still suffer from chronic nerve pain and sciatic pain from a failed back surgery so it's hard to tell if the pain in my ankle area is nerve pain related or could be a tendon rupture.  I've had the nerve pain in my ankle and foot for months before taking the Cipro but just seems it's gotten worse.  As you can see from my other post, it did no good to address my concerns to the doctor.  Hoping it is just related to the sciatica as it is the same foot as with the sciatic nerve pain.

 

Donna

 

Ty Patty

I took floroquinolones long b4 I knew this and now I HAVE perripheral neuropathy -and no one knows why.I have a pretty good idea.

too late now...but never agian.

Adverse reactions to fluoroquinolones are in the 1-per-1000 range, and serious long term reactions are a lot less common than that.

 

You should discusss your concerns with your doctor, and go from there. I'd avoid taking cipro if I could, but I wouldn't be scared of taking a short course of it for a demonstrable bacterial infection that doesn't respond to other treatment.

I can see a short course if there were no alternative but dont want to risk it as I took macrobid for 3 days and my feet and hands went completely numb.So I think i will try everyhting else first.

ty for your replies.

Please include Levaquin and Avelox (and others I cannot now remember) to the fluoroquinolone group.  By the way, alot of doctors are unaware of the adverse reactions to the cns from fluoroquinolones but I think it is slowly catching on with some of the docs.

 

Patty  xo

I was reading this thread abt quinalones and other antibiotics , I was given azithromycin for 5 days while I was taking K , that was in March 2009 , I never at that time experienced any reaction from it at all, and when I came off K C/T May 2009 , was wondering if taking azithromycin at that time and if it was gng to effect my CNS would that would of happened right away, and after gng C/T in May 2009 thats when I started to have w/d , but I also had many many windows throughout the entire time, I guess I still worry if there was something else cause me to have these symptoms I am still enduring with. Just wondering.

Hi Donna,

 

Since you had the ankle and foot pain prior to the fluoroquinolones I am assuming it stems from nerve pain.  I had surgery on L5-S1 a number of years ago for sciatic pain and drop foot which was successful.  I have found out that benzo withdrawals seems to affect our most vulnerable places.  I  had sciatic pain a couple of months ago and it has resolved. 

 

Spengler, I am sure you wouldn't want to be that possible 1 in 1,000 to get affected by a fluoroquinolone, especially while going through this process.  Millions of people take this drug so that goes to show how many people are affected.  Fluoroquinolones are being used as the first line of defense for many illnesses which is not necessary.  My opinion only.

 

Patty  xo