Zithromax is one of America’s leading antibiotics, but is also the subject of numerous injury reports, indicating Zithromax could induce a number of severe side effects, including kidney failure.

Zithromax is prescribed to treat a variety of infections. One of Pfizer’s top drugs, Zithromax was approved by the FDA in 1992, initially only approved to treat certain respiratory and skin infections. It has since been approved to treat a wide range of conditions.

Despite the severe side effects it has been associated with, Zithromax still reigns supreme in the antibiotic market. Even with the release of generic Zithromax, the brand-name drug continues to rake in hundreds of millions in profit on an annual basis.

Many experts believe this popularity stems from the short prescription regime of five days, compared to the typical 10-day prescriptions of other antibiotics. This has made it vastly popular with parents and young children, who often find the prospect of taking medications displeasing.

Instead of killing the bacterial cells, Zithromax works by destroying their reproduction capabilities and preventing the infection from growing, with the remaining cells eventually dying off.

Overview of Zithromax Kidney Failure Concern

Like many drugs, Zithromax comes with its fair share of side effects and risks that were not mentioned on the drug’s label. One of these complications is kidney failure.

While rare, there have been injury reports submitted to the FDA, indicating a correlation between this drug and the unwanted shutdown of these organs.

Data was collected from the FDA and social media outlets, analyzing 10,955 patients who were prescribed Zithromax for about a month. As of July 1, data revealed that 267 (2.44%) patients had suffered acute kidney failure.

It is unknown as to why Zithromax may be inducing kidney failure. According to the drug injuries reports filed by patients, they were not warned of potential kidney failure and never would have taken Zithromax if they had known of the risk.