Open AccessRational use of the fluoroquinolones
Author(s) -
GA Richards,
Adrian Brink,
Charles Feldman
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
samj. south african medical journal/south african medical journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.527
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 2078-5135
pISSN - 0256-9574
DOI - 10.7196/samj.2019.v109i6.14002
Subject(s) - medicine , typhoid fever , intensive care medicine , respiratory tract infections , tuberculosis , drug , food and drug administration , pharmacology , respiratory system , virology , pathology
The systemic fluoroquinolones (FQs) have recently been reported to be associated with significant side-effects in susceptible individuals. This has prompted the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the USA and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to issue warnings regarding their use. The FQs should not be used for common bacterial infections, such as urinary tract infections, travellers' diarrhoea and upper and lower respiratory tract infections, unless it is not possible to use another oral agent. There are situations, however, in which these agents are not only effective, but their benefit outweighs the risk. These include the management of conditions such as acute prostatitis, typhoid fever, prosthetic joint infections, multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, certain hospital-acquired infections and situations where the organism is susceptible to FQs, which could then be administered orally. Alternatively, the patient would have to be admitted to hospital for parenteral therapy.