The peer-reviewed journal Clinical Kidney Journal published a case report of kidney problems in a Zithromax patient.

According to the 2011 case report, a sixteen year old was hospitalized after ten days of alleged Zithromax side effects. Per the case report, she had suffered from fatigue, a lack of energy, vomiting, and stomach pain, but didn’t have a rash that could indicate Zithromax SJS.

Doctors ran a battery of medical tests and found she had kidney failure. Doctors treated her with several drugs, including steroids. It took four weeks, but she completely recovered from kidney failure.

The case report noted that there had been two previous cases of acute kidney problems associated with Zithromax. This included kidney failure. One of these cases involved a person who was still on dialysis 10 months after they had developed kidney failure.

Dialysis is a process where doctors use a machine to filter biological waste products from the blood with machines in order to compensate for failing kidneys. But in the discussion of the case report, the authors speculated that the handful of reported cases of Zithromax kidney failure may have wider implications.

Zithromax is widely used in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). Due to fluid buildup in their lungs, CF patients have a high rate of infection, and since Zithromax is one of the most common antibiotics in the world, many CF patients get the drug at some point.

In addition to Zithromax’s antibiotic properties, it also has an added benefit for CF patients. Zithromax seems to reduce lung inflammation of CF patients, easing some of the symptoms of the disorder. However, the case study’s authors speculate that Zithromax may cause serious Zithromax side effects in CF patients as well.

Per the authors of the study, kidney problems including kidney failure “is increasingly recognized in cystitis fibrosis.” Though this is usually attributed to other drugs commonly prescribed to fight CF, the authors suggest that some of the kidney problems reported in CF patients may actually come from Zithromax.

About Zithromax

Zithromax is the trade name of Azithromycin. Formulations of azithromycin also sell under the names Z-Pak Azithrocin, and others depending on the country. In 2010, Zithromax was the most prescribed antibiotic in the United States.

The fact that Zithromax is very effective against a wide range of bacterial infections is a big part of the drug’s popularity. Doctors can treat everything from whooping cough to Legionnaires” disease.

Since Zithromax is so popular, it is possible that even relatively unlikely Zithromax side effects could translate to serious raw numbers of people suffering from alleged Zithromax side effects.

But the authors of the study say that there is reason for hope. Since their patient made a full recovery under their care, researchers suggested that many cases of kidney failure allegedly linked to Zithromax could be reversed by intensive medical care, including the drugs doctors had prescribed for this patient.

But researchers also concluded that if a previously healthy person, or a person with CF, develops kidney problems, Zithromax may well be the cause.