Potent quinolone antibiotics, such as Cipro (ciproflaxin), Levaquin (loevoflaxin) and Avelox (moxifolxacin), carry the risk of dangerous side effects including peripheral neuropathy, a nerve disorder characterized by symptoms of tingling, numbness, unusual sensations, weakness, burning pain, or a change in sensation to light touch, pain or temperature in the affected area.

Hands and feet are the most common body parts to experience peripheral neuropathy, often referred to as “glove and stocking syndrome.”

Levaquin was the best-selling antibiotic in the United States in 2010, according to a 2012 New York Times report, but in 2011, more than 2,000 Levaquin lawsuits had been filed by patients who had suffered severe reactions from the potent drug.

“Instead of being reserved for use against serious, perhaps life-threatening bacterial infections like hospital-acquired pneumonia, these antibiotics are frequently prescribed for sinusitis, bronchitis, earaches and other ailments that may resolve on their own or can be treated with less potent drugs or nondrug remedies — or are caused by viruses, which are not susceptible to antibiotics,” according to the Times.

Several drugs in the class of quinolone antibiotics – synthetic antibacterial drugs that directly inhibit bacterial DNA synthesis — have been taken off the market, but six continue to receive FDA-approval for use in the United States, according to Mercola.

In addition to Cipro, Levaquin and Avelox the FDA still approves use of Factive, Noroxin and Floxin.

The class of drugs are able to penetrate sensitive tissues, enabling it to enter the brain and damage the central nervous system.  While medical experts don’t recommend quinolone antibiotics as “a first line of defense” to treat common bacterial infections such as urinary tract infections, sinus infections, ear infections and conjunctivitis, doing so has become increasingly common.

In August 2013, the FDA issued a safety announcement and label change and medication guides for fluoroquinolones antibiotics, warning the public about the risk of possible peripheral neuropathy.

“This serious nerve damage potentially caused by fluoroquinolones may occur soon after these drugs are taken and may be permanent,” the FDA warned.

If a patient develops symptoms of peripheral neuropathy, the fluoroquinolone should be stopped unless the benefit of continued treatment with a fluoroquinolone outweighs the risk, according to the FDA, which further warned that the symptoms can occur at any time during treatment and may last for months or years after the drug is stopped. The peripheral neuropathy can also be permanent.

The 2012 FDA warning was not the first for quinolone antibiotics. Four years earlier, the FDA posted a black box warning about the risk of severe tendon damage.

Between 1997 and 2010 the FDA Adverse Events Reporting System (AERS) documented 2,500 reports of deaths linked to quinolones, in addition to 45,000 negative quinolone side effects. The agency noted that only 10 percent of adverse drug reactions are picked up by AERS, which means about 90 percent of all adverse drug reactions go unreported.