ScienceDaily
(Aug.
13,
2012)
—
The
commonly
used
broad-spectrum
antibiotics
moxifloxacin
and
levofloxacin
are
associated
with
an
increased
risk
of
severe
liver
injury
in
older
people,
according
to a
new
study
published
in
CMAJ
(Canadian
Medical
Association
Journal).
Moxifloxacin
and
levofloxacin
are
commonly
prescribed
"fluoroquinolone"
antibiotics
often
used
for
bacterial
infections
such
as
respiratory
infections,
sinus
infections
and
others.
However,
both
the
European
Medicines
Agency
and
Health
Canada
have
issued
warnings
about
the
risk
of
liver
injury
from
moxifloxacin,
although
there
are
few
published
studies
on
the
safety
of
fluoroquinolones,
especially
related
to
liver
damage.
Researchers
from
the
Institute
for
Clinical
Evaluative
Sciences
(ICES),
Toronto;
the
University
of
Toronto
and
McMaster
University,
Hamilton,
Ont.,
examined
the
risk
of
acute
liver
injury
in
patients
taking
moxifloxacin
compared
with
those
taking
other
antibiotics
commonly
used
to
treat
respiratory
tract
infections.
They
looked
at 9
years
of
data
from
Ontario
to
identify
people
aged
66
years
or
older
with
no
history
of
liver
disease
who
were
admitted
to
hospital
for
liver
injury
within
30
days
after
receiving
a
prescription
for
these
antibiotics.
Excluding
patients
admitted
for
previous
liver
disease
or
recent
hospitalization,
144
patients
were
admitted
for
acute
liver
injury,
with
the
median
time
from
the
dispensing
of
the
antibiotic
to
admission
to
hospital
being
9
days.
Eighty-eight
(61.1%)
of
patients
died
during
their
index
admission
to
hospital
for
liver
injury.
"Compared
with
clarithromycin,
moxifloxacin
was
associated
with
a
more
than
2-fold
increased
risk
of
admission
to
hospital
for
acute
liver
injury,"
writes
Dr.
David
Juurlink,
ICES,
with
coauthors.
"Levofloxacin
was
also
associated
with
a
statistically
significant
but
lower
risk
of
hepatotoxicity
than…moxifloxacin."
The
authors
note
that,
although
these
cases
are
serious,
they
are
relatively
rare,
with
about
6
cases
for
every
100
000
patients
treated
with
the
antibiotics.
The
authors
believe
their
findings
are
an
important
contribution
to
the
evidence
regarding
the
risks
of
these
antibiotics.
"Despite
recent
regulatory
warnings
regarding
the
hepatic
safety
of
moxifloxacin,
there
is a
lack
of
controlled
studies
supporting
the
notion
that
moxifloxacin
presents
a
particular
risk
relative
to
other
broad-spectrum
antibiotic
agents
and,
in
particular,
to
other
fluoroquinolones,"
write
the
authors.
They
conclude:
"Although
our
results
require
confirmation
in
other
settings,
the
findings
suggest
that
both
moxifloxacin
and
levofloxacin
be
considered
for
regulatory
warnings
regarding
acute
liver
injury."
Story
Source:
The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Canadian Medical Association Journal, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal
Reference:
B.
V.
B.
Reddy,
D.
Kallifidas,
J.
H.
Kim,
Z.
Charlop-Powers,
Z.
Feng,
S.
F.
Brady.
Natural
Product
Biosynthetic
Gene
Diversity
in
Geographically
Distinct
Soil
Microbiomes.
Applied
and
Environmental
Microbiology,
2012;
78
(10):
3744
DOI:
10.1128/AEM.00102-12
Canadian
Medical
Association
Journal
(2012,
August
13).
Common
antibiotics
pose
a
rare
risk
of
severe
liver
injury
in
older
patients.
ScienceDaily.
Retrieved
August
16,
2012,
from
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/08/120813130621.htm