Fluoroquinolone toxicities are an effect of antibiotics which may cause long-lasting, serious side effects. They include nausea vomiting, diarrhea and muscles pain. Floxing is a different name for this condition.
Patients who have suffered from adverse reactions to a fluoroquinolone/quinolone antibiotic should avoid fluoroquinolones. Particular caution should be taken for patients who are elderly, suffering from kidney diseases and those having had an organ transplant.
Fluoroquinolones are the major component of the quinolone antibiotics currently in use. They contain a fluorine element in their chemical structure and are effective against Gram-negative as well as Gram-positive bacteria.
Fluoroquinolones “kill bacteria” by blocking enzymes which normaly break up DNA in cell replication. These enzymes usually cut DNA’s double-helix, and then pass another part through the gap to finish the cut.
However, quinolones bind with enzymes and block their repair. Fluorine atoms were added to the quinolones’ structures in the late 1980s. This allowed antibiotics to enter all body tissues and even the central nerve system. This also enhanced their effectiveness against a vast variety of bacterial infections.
Fluoroquinolones are of value for certain diseases, including some life-threatening ones in cases where other antibiotics are insufficiently effective.
Fluoroquinolones have been used too frequently, just as many antibiotics. They’ve been linked to dangerous side effects throughout time. The FDA has issued numerous warnings concerning their use. Numerous label changes have been mandated and certain fluoroquinolones come with black box warnings.
What antibiotics are fluoroquinolones ? And which aren’t?
The medications listed comprise Cipro gemifloxacin, gemifloxacin (Factive) Cipro, ciprofloxacin levofloxacin (“Levaquin”) and levofloxacin (“Levaquin”) and moxifloxacin (“Avelox”) Norfloxacin („Noroxin”) and ofloxacin (“Floxin”Floxin).
What is fluoroquinolone toxicity syndrome?
Signs + Symptoms
Fluoroquinolone drugs have been associated with potential serious, long-term and permanently debilitating side effects, including toxicity to the central nervous system, cardiovascular system and musculoskeletal system. Other Cipro toxicities include:
– Mitochondrial dysfunction and DNA damage
– Brain Fog
– Peripheral Neuropathy
– Blurry Vision
– DNA Damage
– Depression and anxiety due to Gaba, Gut Damage and the effects
– Tendonitis
– Muscle Atrophy
– Reflexes that are more responsive
The first signs of Cipro toxicities include lower back pain, tendonitis, tendon rupture, arthralgia or pain in the extremities, gait issues, neuropathies correlated with paraesthesia, depression, fatigue and memory impairment. They can also cause sleep disorders, and impairment of hearing sight, taste and smell. Fluoroquinolones can increase the risk of developing peripheral neuropathy by 47% over time.
Ciprofloxacin was proven to alter the topology of mitochondrial DNA and block normal transcription and maintenance. Tendinitis, tendon rupture and other tendon injuries could be caused by damages to the mitochondria of tenocytes caused by fluoroquinolone treatment. It could also lead to inflammation and fatigue.
For more information, click how to heal from floxing