Research shows the antibiotic levofloxacin — sold under the brand name Levaquin, as well as Tavanic outside the United States (or Oftaquix, Quixin, and Iquix in eye drops or eardrops, and oral solutions) — may cause Stevens Johnson Syndrome.

Levaquin is a brand name for the drug levofloxacin. Developed by Daiichi Sankyo, the Japanese pharmaceutical giant licensed the patent to Sanofi-Aventis outside the United States and to Johnson & Johnson domestically via its subsidiary Ortho-McNeil.

Compared to other antibiotics on the market, Levaquin is more costly and may carry more risks. Levaquin has allegedly been linked to two rare but very serious side effects known as Stevens Johnson Syndrome and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis.

Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS) and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN) are mild-to-life-threatening adverse reactions that have been reported after exposure to fluoroquinolones like Levaquin, which affect the mucous membranes and skin.

Mucous membranes, such as the eyes and mouth, can swell and blister causing permanent damage to these areas. Additionally, these allergic reactions cause a painful rash to spread across the body.

As the SJS rash progresses, the skin blisters cause lesions. TEN is considered a more serious form of SJS, and can result in full separation of the dermis from the epidermis, requiring extensive medical treatment.

At its worst, SJS and TENs reactions can cause permanent injuries to patients such as:

• Blindness
• Lung damage
• Permanent scarring or disfigurement
• In some extreme cases, death

The first case of Levaquin-induced TENs was reported in 2002. While SJS and TENs are rare, they continue to be reported with Levaquin use.

Fluoroquinolones such as Levaquin represent approximately 11 percent of quinolone antibiotics prescribed worldwide to treat outpatient infections such as urinary tract infections, lower respiratory tract infections, and bronchitis, including those that are resistant to other flouroquinolone antibiotics.

European patent authorities granted the first Levofloxacin patent in 1987, and on Dec. 20, 1996, the FDA approved it for sale in the United States. Since then it has been sold in multiple forms such as oral tablets, and eye, ear, and oral droplet solutions.

However, since 2005, controversies have eroded consumer confidence in Levaquin. Consequently, in July 2009, the FDA placed a “black box warning,” the agency’s most serious alert, on Levaquin.

Levaquin Lawsuits

Given the seriousness of these and other levofloxacin associated adverse events, the FDA required Ortho McNeil to include a Levaquin Black Box warning in July 2008.

However, while the packaging manufactured during and after September 2008 contains the Black Box Warning, there are reports that old Levaquin packaging does not contain the Black Box label, and that this old packaging was available up until July 2009.

There are no known efforts to issue a Levaquin recall or ban the drug. Many patients who have developed allergic reactions such as SJS by fluoroquinolone drugs like Levaquin have filed SJS lawsuits against pharmaceutical manufacturers in an attempt to gain justice for themselves or their loved one’s injuries.