Levaquin Side Effects
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Levaquin Side Effects
If you or someone you know was perscribed Levaquin and subsequently suffered a tendon tear or rupture please fill out the Free Case Evaluation form to see if you are eligible for compensation.
Levaquin is an antibiotic produced by Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson. The medication has been on the market for several years, accumulating a steadily growing record of complaints over side effects. The FDA has twice required the manufacturer to amend its packaging and expand on the side effects that had been reported to the FDA with some regularity.
Levaquin was initially sold with the usual warnings one sees with antibiotics: side effects may include nausea, diarrhea, headache, and so forth. However in 2004 the FDA demanded that the descriptive language included in all packaging for Levaquin be expanded to include the following: "… Levaquin…should be discontinued if the patient experiences symptoms of neuropathy including pain, burning, tingling, numbness, and/or weakness or other alterations of sensation including light touch, pain, temperature, position sense, and vibratory sensation in order to prevent the development of an irreversible condition." Generally the first sign of a strong allergic reaction to Levaquin is a rash - it is recommended that use of the drug be discontinued immediately, in order that the 'irreversible condition' is avoided.
Levaquin has proven to impact joints and tendons as well. Medical reports include mention of sore shoulders, knees and ankles, but what have caused the most concern are repeated occurrences of tendons rupturing. Many otherwise healthy patients taking Levaquin for a staph or strep infection have snapped Achilles tendons and tendons in other joints. This particular side effect has occurred so often that a dozens of lawsuits have been filed against Johnson & Johnson.
In 2005 the Physician’s Desk Reference (PDR) which is the medical encyclopedia found in every doctor’s office and updated yearly, described Levaquin’s potential side effects as "… tremors, restlessness, anxiety, lightheadedness, confusion, hallucinations, paranoia, depression, nightmares, insomnia, may increase risk for people predisposed to seizures, and rarely, suicidal thoughts or acts."
In August of 2008 the FDA again mandated additional warning language for Levaquin - the so-called "black box" warning that is the last requirement the FDA issues before demanding recall. The language to be printed in the black box includes references hepatoxicity - potential damage to the liver and/or kidneys. The FDA commented that "Although no evidence of serious drug-associated hepatotoxicity was detected in clinical trials of more than 7000 patients, the agency has received postmarketing reports of severe reactions (including acute hepatitis and fatal events) in levofloxacin-treated patients." Levofloxacin is the generic name for Levaquin.
