Recent safety reviews around the world have found that the widely used antibiotic Avelox, or the generic moxifloxacin, may be linked to potentially life-threatening liver damage, including liver failure.

A Health Canada study warns that Avelox users experiencing abdominal pain, diminished appetite, yellowing of the skin and eyes, severe itching, dark urine or pale-colored stools should seek medical attention.

In the United States, Avelox is prescribed for treating acute sinusitis, chronic bronchitis, pneumonia, skin infections and abdominal infections.

It is among the class of powerful antibiotics known as fluoroquinolones, which have been linked to 2,500 deaths between 1997 and 2010, as well as 45,000 adverse quinolone side effects during the same time frame.

While widely prescribed – the fluoroquinolone Cipro became a household name following the anthrax scare after 9/11 – fluoroquinolones may be one of the riskiest drugs to take due to their potential side effects that can leave patients with serious, permanent injuries and, in some cases, death. Some doctors have called for reserving the class of drugs to only the most serious bacterial infections instead of a first-line option for urinary tract, ear and sinus infections, for example.

A pharmacological epidemiologist at the University of British Columbia told The New York Times in 2012 that the drugs were overused “by lazy doctors who are trying to kill a fly with an automatic weapon.”

Other antibiotics in this class of drugs include Ciloxan Ophthalmic, Levaquin, QUIXIN Ophthalmic, Maxaquin, Chibroxin Ophthalmic, Noroxin Oral, Floxin, Ocuflox Ophthalmic, Zagam and Trovan.

Fluoroquinolone Side Effects Lead to Lawsuits

In addition to liver toxicity, Cipro, Avelox, Levaquin and other fluoroquinolones may cause Stevens Johnson Syndrome and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis.

Stevens Johnson Syndrome, typically caused by a reaction to medication or an infection, affects the skin and mucous membranes, including the eyes, mouth and genitals. It presents as flu-like symptoms and is followed by a painful red or purplish rash that spreads and then blisters before the top layer of the affected skin dies and sheds.

Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis, also known as Lyell’s Syndrome, is a more severe form of Stevens Johnson Syndrome and is life-threatening. It is diagnosed when the top layer of skin detaches from the lower layers in over 30 percent of the body. Up to 40 percent of those who contract Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis die from complications – infection and sepsis –of the painful disease.

Other serious fluoroquinolone side effects have also been reported. The Food and Drug Administration ordered the manufacturers of fluoroquinolones to add black box warning labels on their products alerting consumers to the risk of tendonitis and ruptured tendons. Moxifloxacin specifically may also cause muscle weakness, life-threatening breathing problems and worsening of symptoms of myasthenia gravis.

Thousands of personal injury lawsuits across multiple states have been filed against the manufacturers of fluoroquinolones. These quinolone lawsuits accuse drug makers of concealing the risk of serious side effects such as liver failure and Stevens Johnson Syndrome.

According to the Times, in addition to musculoskeletal, visual and renal systems, the drugs can “seriously injure the central nervous system (causing ‘brain fog,’ depression, hallucinations and psychotic reactions), the heart, liver, skin (painful, disfiguring rashes and phototoxicity), the gastrointestinal system (nausea and diarrhea), hearing and blood sugar metabolism.”

Fluoroquinolones have also been linked to increased cases of MRSA and severe diarrhea caused by Clostridium difficile. Fluoroquinolones were responsible for 55 percent of C. difficile infections at a Quebec. Hospital, according to one study.