Nebraska Teenager Contracts Zithromax Stevens Johnson Syndrome

According to local reports, shortly after beginning the medication, sores began to develop on the inside of this mouth. He and his mother, Holli Nelson, were told to keep an eye on the rash to see if it worsened. It got so bad that they were in the emergency room at Regional West Medical Center by the end of the night.

The emergency room doctor told Nelson and his mother that he had a rare disease called Stevens Johnson Syndrome and that it was an allergic reaction to the Zithromax antibiotic that he was taking.

SJS usually starts out with flu-like symptoms such as fever, sore throat, and headache. The skin rash may initially start out as hives, but blisters will begin to develop on the skin and mucous membranes, especially the mouth, nose, and eyes. It usually culminates in the shedding of the skin — which means that the top layer of the skin has died. Eating, sleeping, urinating and even breathing can all become difficult.

Nelson’s condition worsened before it got better. His throat began to close due the swelling, and doctors considered having him transferred to Children’s Hospital in Denver, Colorado, but they had no room for him there. Even if they did have room, doctors feared that he would pick up something from another hospital because his immune system was so low, which could ultimately kill him if the Zithromax Stevens Johnson Syndrome didn’t.

Nelson lost 26 pounds while he was fighting SJS and was told by doctors that it will take two to six months to make a full recovery.

Nelson had taken Zithromax previously without a problem, but in order for a person to have an allergic reaction to anything, their body has to be exposed to the substance at least once and the body has to remember it. The fact that Nelson took Zithromax before was no protection to him.

Numerous Stevens Jonson Syndrome lawsuits have been filed against drug makers for failing to include a warning about SJS side effects. It is not clear if Nelson’s family will file a lawsuit against Pfizer for their son’s Zithromax SJS, but other families have.