Fluoroquinolones, or quinolones, are a group of antibiotics that are one of the most requested types of antibiotics in the United States.

However, quinolone antibiotics are also some of the most commonly reported drugs to have allegedly caused Stevens Johnson Syndrome, leading to quinolone SJS lawsuits against various pharmaceutical companies. Among the quinolone antibiotics linked to Stevens Johnson Syndrome is lomefloxacin, also known as Maxaquin.

What is Lomefloxacin?

Lomefloxacin (or Maxaquin) is a quinolone antibiotic used to treat various bacterial infections, such as bronchitis and urinary tract infections. The brand name of this medication is discontinued, but generic versions may be available.

Lomefloxacin is also used to prevent urinary tract infections prior to surgery. Patients who use Lomefloxacin to treat a UTI may be at risk of developing Stevens Johnson Syndrome.

What is Stevens Johnson Syndrome?

Stevens Johnson Syndrome is a serious, potentially life-threatening skin disease. The most common cause of Stevens Johnson Syndrome and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN) is through an allergic drug reaction.

Stevens Johnson Syndrome and TEN are potentially life-threatening adverse reactions that have been described after exposure to fluoroquinolone or quinolone antibiotics, such as lomefloxacin.

With Stevens Johnson Syndrome the sufferer can first experience non-specific symptoms, such as a headache, a aching body, fever, and a bad cough. Then a rash may develop over the face and trunk of the body, which then spreads to other parts of the body. The rash is patchy and can spread to various areas of the body.

Blistering can then appear, usually in places such as the eyes, mouth, nose and genital areas, and the mucous membrane becomes inflamed. With Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis, another variation of the disease, the skin also begins to come away in large amounts.

This leaves the sufferer looking as though he or she has burns. The places where the skin has come away can seep fluids quite copiously, and there is also a big risk of infection.

Quinolones and Stevens Johnson Syndrome

Quinolone antibiotics have had the American medical community concerned for years about over possible adverse side effects. The Lomefloxacin fluoroquinolone side effects may cause patients to be hospitalized, and leave victims to contend with numerous long-lasting consequences, such as SJS.

While a rare occurrence, Stevens Johnson Syndrome is devastating when it strikes, often leaving the victims scarred and bed-ridden. Additionally, the rarity of Stevens Johnson Syndrome makes it especially dangerous to patients because doctors often do not recognize the symptoms once they appear.

Signs normally appear within the first few weeks of starting the medication, and begin with flu-like symptoms. In almost all cases, Stevens Johnson Syndrome requires hospitalization and patients must be treated in the same unit as burn victims due to how their skin detaches.

While there are no statistics available to specifically address lomefloxacin’s likelihood to cause this condition, there have been reported cases that indicate the possible correlation.

Quinolone Stevens Johnson Syndrome Lawsuits

On average, there are approximately 300 new cases of SJS reported a year, which means it is a very rare occurrence among the billions of American patients. Because this condition is so rare, and the unlikelihood of developing it so low, drug companies that manufacture quinolones antibiotics such as lomefloxacin neglect to mention it on their product’s labels.