Guest blog written by Quinolone Vigilance Foundations' Executive Director Rachel Brummert for Clarkson Law Firm.
QVF Warns Users of Cipro, Levaquin, and Avelox of Nerve Damage Risk
Eight years ago, I walked out of my primary care physician’s office relieved that I would soon be feeling better. I had some congestion and a sore throat. Nothing earth shattering, but it was just enough of a nuisance to bring me to the doctor. She gave me a prescription for Levaquin, a commonly prescribed, potent fluoroquinolone antibiotic. Little did I know that I would become disabled from only a few pills.
I later learned that fluoroquinolone antibiotics, the most commonly prescribed of which are Levaquin, Cipro, and Avelox, are meant for only life-threatening infections and were never meant to be prescribed as a first line of defense. However, they are often prescribed for lesser infections, and even when no infection exists.
They are very powerful medications that are not intended for people who don’t need the strength of these drugs. Even scarier is that even if you stop taking these medications because of the adverse reactions, the damage can come weeks or months after stopping them, and damage can be permanent.
In 2008, the pharmaceutical industry was made to put out cautionary information warning of the increased risk of tendon rupture. They were mandated to send out Dear Doctor letters to include the adverse reactions associated with fluoroquinolones. To date, they were never sent out. In August 2013, an additional warning came out to include Peripheral Neuropathy, a form of nerve damage, which can be permanent.
Antibiotics are supposed to help us feel better, not result in disability, or even death.
Quinolone Vigilance Foundation (QVF) exists to educate the public and the medical community about the dangers of fluoroquinolone antibiotics, as well as to fund vital and necessary research on the damage that fluoroquinolones cause. We advocate (1) for stricter warnings, (2) to have these medications prescribed as they were intended—for life-threatening infections, (3) for these drugs not to be prescribed to children, and (4) to have patient consent after being educated about the risks.
Clarkson Law Firm has been instrumental in providing information, answering questions, and giving legal options to hundreds of victims of fluoroquinolone toxicity and related injuries across the United States and even throughout the world—from Australia to South Africa to the UK. QVF encourages you to contact a quinolone injury lawyer at Clarkson Law Firm to discuss the legal issues related to these disabling injuries.
For more information about the work we do at the QVF and for a comprehensive list of fluoroquinolones and the risks involved with taking them, please visit our website www.SaferPills.org.
Rachel Brummert, Executive Director
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