Post Marketing Reports for October 2002

From: "Kathy" <kathyperry77@y...>
Date: Sun Oct 6, 2002 1:45 pm
Subject: Took me 2 years to find you all

Hello everyone!
I am both sad/and happy to have found this group, and also a bit
embarrassed and frustrated that it took me 2 years to do it. This is
my first post, but I have been reading for about a month now. I
was "floxed" in November of 2000-but didnt know it till now. But
strangely, I had been on Cipro for 5 years, pretty frequently, and 10
years of Bactrum (sulfisoxazole)-(whole different drug family i
believe) prior to that.

In November 2000 I had to have emergency surgery for an eptopic
(tubular)pregnancy (was unexpected, and a surprise to me). Anyhow..
I was also diagnosed with a UTI - something ive been having trouble
with my entire life ( I am 34 years old). It was the last time I
had a UTI, thankfully after having recurrent problems since age 5.
So, after my surgery I was pretty much out of it for a few days, and
my boyfriend was very sweet and took care of me, gave me my meds.
pain killers... the usual dose of cipro 500mg ?twice a day i think.
But also I was on a heavy dose of Iron suppliments. Which is why I
think I reacted to the cipro this time and not in the past. "my
missing link" you may say as it was confusing for me when I first
heard about this group, why I would react suddenly after 5 years. Of
course I put aside the fact that I have had tinnitus for many years
so bad that I wear hearing aids... Just another symptom to go with
the curse I suppose. Well, some other day I will post again with my
story of the 2 year hell-in-the Doctors offices Ive been through and
all my problems (dont want to write a book here)

Just want to say that I have been gratefully reading all of your
posts as I no longer feel like some psycho hypocondriac (sp?) LOL I
could probably get the correct spelling if I took a peek in my
medical records.

I am finding hope with a couple of new doctors, hollistic...etc..
(basically any Doctor ive seen in the last few months that my HMO
doesnt pay for, I do). Go figure.. lol they have been the only ones
who have helped. I'll post more about that later, whats working for
me etc. Just wanted to say Hi for now. Take care all... hang in
there.

Kathy



From: Anita Glick <toony1234@y...>
Date: Sun Oct 13, 2002 7:50 pm
Subject: new to this group
I just joined this group after searching on the
internet for some information on quinolones. I am
searching for some information on this type of
medicine and went into previous post and found a lot
of information that I was unaware of. I probably have
a pretty typical story as the rest on this group.
About 5 years ago I was given the medication Cipro,
took one pill and ended up in the hospital for 7 days.
I developed a terrible rash and an extremely high
fever and told never to take cipro again. This past
week I developed a UTI and the doctor prescribed
Luvoquin ( I think that is the proper spelling ), was
to take 1 pill daily. As having been treated with
sulfa drugs before and not knowing what this
medication was I decided I would just take half a pill
as I was afraid that I would have an upset stomach.
Wtihin 3 hours I was on my way to the emergency room,
face, neck and throat swelling, head itching like
crazy and my face as red as fire. While in the
emergency room I started shaking violently and the
doctors were not sure what was going on with me. They
gave me mega doses of steriods and benedryl and after
several hours was allowed to go home, only to return
to the ER the following night with the exact same
symptoms. I stayed in the hospital a couple of days
given meds through IV, oxygen and breathing treatments
then sent home with a handfull of prescriptions to
counteract this quinolone antibiotic. Two days later I
am noticing that I am extremely shaky and my throat
feels like it is constricting at times. Not actually
swelling like it was to begin with but I have
developed a cough and hoarseness. And the shaky
feeling just won't stop. I suffer from panic attacks
and I have taken anxiety medication for the last two
days to try to control these shakes. Any idea as to
what this could be? Has anyone had problems like this
and will it go away? My head is in a fog and I have
quit taking all prescriptions that they gave me other
than the cortisone. Yesterday I was shaking so bad and
head felt so funny that I absolutely was unable to
function. Today the fuzziness in my head has went away
but the shakes are still there. My husband insist that
I go back to the doctor this week, but I am afraid to
as he was aware that I was allergic to cipro and still
prescribed the luvoquin. I hope to be able to read
others experiences in this group, how they were
affected and how they are doing now. Thanks in
advance.

Anita



From: "someshore97" <bolanosbliss@a...>
Date: Thu Oct 17, 2002 12:00 am
Subject: my first posting
Ever since I took Cipro approximately two months ago, my life has
been out of control, to say the least. For about two weeks after
stopping the drug, (only 3 500mg doses), I fell into the deepest
depression I have ever experienced. It felt as if my soul had been
ripped out. I was already going through a tough time dealing with my
medical problem (epididymitis), and a pre-existing depressive
condition. I was the last guy in the world who should ever have been
prescribed a quinolone. I called a pharmacist to ask him if this
reaction would be temporary, and he said Cipro was not causing the
SEVERE depression and to keep on taking it. Luckily I followed my
gut instinct and discontinued anyway. The SEVERE depression lifted
for a while, but it still hasn't totally left me. Interestingly
enough, I was on benzos while I was taking the Cipro so who knows if
that works in my favor or not. I know that I'm taking more benzos
now than ever, often in an attempt to just stay in bed all day so as
not to have to deal with feeling so horrible. I want to get off the
benzos because I don't think they're so good for my depression.
Acupuncture seems like a promising alternative. Who knows if the
adverse drug reaction caused all of this, because I already had
problems to begin with. Everything just seems so much worse now.
And I still have the epidymitis problem, although strangely enough
the benzos seem to help with that so maybe its not an infection after
all but rather a muscle spasm issue. Any suggestions on how to deal
with my anxiety/depression and chronic pain would be appreciated.
Thanks for letting me vent. My prayers go out to BobGroz and
everyone else.
Sebastian


From: "Linda Hughes" <dathasgirl@a...>
Date: Fri Oct 18, 2002 5:57 pm
Subject: Levaquin reaction
I just found this group tonight. I was prescribed Levaquin at an
emergency room for a kidney infection, which cleared up. After a
couple of days, though, my body aches and pain became much worse and
have continued to get worse, although I finished the medicine two
days ago. I went to my primary care doctor for the pain and they
did blood tests for muscle breakdown, but never mentioned it could
be a reaction to the Levaquin, (in fact they said none of my
medications could cause muscle pain) but my pharmacist said today
that it can. She said it was extremely rare to have muscle aches
from Levaquin, but possible. I have trouble walking, moving, even
my fingers and toes hurt! The pain is so bad I get nauseous. I
thought I still had the kidney infection because the pain was even
worse than that! It even hurts to turn over in bed and when I sit
still for a few minutes, I can hardly move my legs. I thought I had
something terrible and I've been really worried! Is this a common
reaction to Levaquin? What can I do to alleviate the pain? How long
will it last? Anyone here know?
Thanks,



From: "Hiro101" <hiro101@o...>
Date: Sun Oct 20, 2002 7:28 am
Subject: Levaquin Adverse Reaction..help appreciated
Hello all. Here is my story:

I am a 20 year old male and about 3 or 4 weeks ago I was admitted to a
hospital for high fever and given two doses of Tequin. I was released
from the hospital the next day and given a 5 pill perscription for
Levaquin. They believed it was a virus (which run rampant this time
of year), but gave me the drug as a prophylactic. We all know what
happened after that. I took 4 of the 5 pills and have suffered ever
since.

I had severe insomnia, anxiety / panic attacks, heart palpatations,
night sweats, wierd vision (hard to explain..), painful skin, etc.

Thankfully, I feel that I have been improving each week since
discontinuing the drug. The only symptoms that persist are the wierd
vision, some insomnia, and now my back has been hurting pretty bad for
the last week and I have some minor joint discomfort. I am finally
able go to school and work and be fairly productive. Perhaps my worst
problem is the constant fear that I have regarding my health. I have
become totally absorbed in the every little symptom I feel and I know
that is not healthy but I have been steadily getting better about it.

Anyway, what I really want to know is can I speed up the process at
all? What accelerates this healing process?

Thanks in advance,

JC

PS I have spoken to about 5 people who were able to name the drug I
was taking just by naming the symptoms. I believe this problem is
much more common then the manufacturers and many doctors believe.


From: "lev_patient" <tkuga@y...>
Date: Tue Oct 22, 2002 5:29 am
Subject: Help ! Levaquin induced tendinitis and neuropathy
Dear group,

I was prescribed Levaquin for protatitis for 2
months, starting in the 3rd week of August..It has caused tendon and
joint pain..I can't walk like before or do any exercises..and driving
my car for more than 30 minutes causes pain ..my legs and
my pelvic area ache and become numb..my shoulders ache
and the range of the arm movement is very limited now.
When waking up in the morning, it is hard to stand up
because of the pain in my heels.. I also
have numbness, tingling and occasionally skin crawling sensations..

My physician did not tell me that it would cause problems like
this..and the drug insert was vague about it..in fact they mention it
is vary rare to have side effects like this..when I told my doctor
that I had leg pain, he didn't take it seriously..unfortunately, my
prostatitis was initially painful in my lower back and pelvic area,,
so I assumed the pain in my legs and heels was also from
prostatitis, and I continued to take the Levaquin for 54 days..then I
noticed joint aches and then searched the internet and realized it
was the side effects of Levaquin..

I stopped the medicine and went back to my physician,
and he simply prescribed Medrol, saying I have
tendinitis, but the tendons are not yet ruptured..

But I am not taking Medrol after reading from many
sites that it can actually worsen the condition and cause
rupture of my tendon..I can't even take Advil because it
causes my eyes to swell-- looks like this is an allergy,
but I didn't have such an allergy until I took the
Levaquin..

I am stuck with pain all over the body(heel, joints, muscles)..also
the body becomes numb often..especially the arms, neck and legs.

I am taking a Vitamin supplement (Magnesium,
Calcium and Zinc.) in the hope it will help.

Can you suggest anything I can do to remove the toxic
effects..what is the prognosis in the group's opinion?
Are there any doctors here?

Has anyone treated the toxicity successfully?
Do you think this will last forever?

Should I go to a neurologist and a physiotherapist?
I want to switch my family physician..can anyone suggest a
physician or neurologist in Maryland who is well aware of the side
effects of Levaquin and ways to counteract its toxic effects?

By the way, as a software engineering consultant, I spend
long hours sitting in one place at work..

Now my prostatitis has improved, but it may be because
I take Saw Palmetto and Zinc supplements and not
because of Levaquin..


P.S. Is there any way to take legal action against my primary care
physician and others for the debilitating side effects and gross
negligence in not closely monitoring such a toxic medicine? The
doctor's cavalier attitude in the face of such debilitating side
effects enrages me.

Thanks very much for any help