Quinolones, such as Cipro (ciprofloxacin), have been famously prescribed for a number of bacterial infections, but have also been accused of causing liver damage, Stevens Johnson Syndrome, and other injuries in patients.

Cipro is typically tolerated well by patients, but there are the occasional cases where Cipro side effects occur and medical intervention is needed.

For example, Cipro had been prescribed to a man in his mid-60s and allegedly caused life-threatening injuries to his liver. The patient had a pre-existing heart condition and was prescribed Cipro due to its general success in its function as an antibiotic, in order to treat his bacterial infection. This case was reported by the Division of Digestive Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio.

However, it was reported that only after six days of taking Cipro the patient became jaundiced, and his eyes and skin began to yellow. He reportedly also experienced renal failure.

When the patient was examined, laboratory testing indicated that Cipro had reacted negatively with his liver. His treatment later required dialysis to filter out the medication. After two months of stopping Cipro, the patient was off of dialysis to baseline creatinine treatment, with tests showing the liver normalizing after five months.

At the time, the university researchers stated that this case suggested a relationship between Cipro and liver damage, but there were too few cases to establish any definitive theories.

An entire class action lawsuit movement has been started revolving around quinolone antibiotics like Cipro, due to the severe side effects that have been reported.

Patients who took Cipro and other quinolone antibiotics are now filing lawsuits against the drug makers, for failing to warn them of the potential side effects their medications could cause.

Overview of Cipro Side Effects

Cipro was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1990 and has since been prescribed approximately 20 million times per year. It is commonly prescribed to patients who are suffering from bacteria-induced urinary tract infections, sinusitis, bronchitis, skin infections, urethral and cervical infections.

Other quinolones are generally prescribed for the same purpose, and have become extremely popular among patients and doctors alike. Unfortunately, liver damage has been a concern of medical experts regarding these drugs since June 1999.

At that time, the FDA issued a public warning about the risk of liver damage caused by another quinonlone drug, Trovan (trovafloxacin), after 14 cases of acute liver failure were reported.

More recently, the FDA Adverse Events Reporting System (AERS) has documented 2,500 deaths linked to quinolones between 1997 and 2010. An additional 45,000 negative side effect were reported during the same period.

However, the FDA says that only 10 percent of adverse drug reactions are reported to the AERS.

Other popular fluoroquinolone antibiotics indicated to cause liver damage and other extreme side effects include:

• Ciprofloxacin (Ciloxan Ophthalmic, Cipro)
• Levofloxacin (Levaquin, QUIXIN Ophthalmic)
• Lomefloxacin (Maxaquin)
• Moxifloxacin (Avelox)
• Norfloxacin (Chibroxin Ophthalmic, Noroxin Oral)
• Ofloxacin (Floxin, Ocuflox Ophthalmic)
• Sparfloxacin (Zagam)
• Trovafloxacin (Trovan)