Effects of Cipro and Flagyl

[Brenda- NC]

Carolyn wrote:

I was diagnosed with diverticulitis on Valentine's Day and had to take Flagyl and Levaquin for a total of 24 days. I had started to recover after 10 days on the antibiotics but apparently the infection was not totally cleared up, I had a return of symptoms, so I went back on. I have now been off the antibiotics for about 10 days and have had all kinds of digestive problems and have continued to lose weight. I can't figure out which foods are 'safe' though it is clear that lactose is bad, maybe wheat as well.I went to the ER two days ago and was told that I had a reactive form of IBS and that my intestinal flora was quite compromised. I am now taking Align (probiotic) and Levasin...with Elavil at night for sleep and pain. Has anyone had this same experience? I am wondering how much longer it will be before I feel good again...will I feel good again? Before all of this happened I exercised regularly ate a ton of fish and salad. I would have thought I would be the last person to get diverticulitis. I am discouraged and needing to get back to work.

Hi Carolyn, I know your pain! I had my first 2 attacks last yr. Been good up until last week, no problems to speak of. My gastro dr. put me on Align & Elavil after my really, really bad 2nd attack. They have helped me alot. I stopped the Align the 1st.of this yr. but wished I had not. Thought I would be ok w/o it since it is expensive & I take alot of meds. BUT, I'm back on Align & will always take it....helps to maintain a healthy disgestive track. I think red meat is a trigger & lettuce for me. I'm getting ready for a cruise & I'm terrified I will get really sick again. My 3rd. attack started last week but I am on Levaquin, Align, & Elavil & mostly liquid, low fiber diet.I,also, have IBS like you. I do feel better. Get lots of rest if you can & let your colon heal.
Hang in there....it took about 2 weeks for the Align to get in my system. This disease I believe may be hereditary...my grandmother had it.
Here's hoping you feel better soon. Take care.

[Carolyn]

Brenda- NC wrote:

<quoted text>
Hi Carolyn, I know your pain! I had my first 2 attacks last yr. Been good up until last week, no problems to speak of. My gastro dr. put me on Align & Elavil after my really, really bad 2nd attack. They have helped me alot. I stopped the Align the 1st.of this yr. but wished I had not. Thought I would be ok w/o it since it is expensive & I take alot of meds. BUT, I'm back on Align & will always take it....helps to maintain a healthy disgestive track. I think red meat is a trigger & lettuce for me. I'm getting ready for a cruise & I'm terrified I will get really sick again. My 3rd. attack started last week but I am on Levaquin, Align, & Elavil & mostly liquid, low fiber diet.I,also, have IBS like you. I do feel better. Get lots of rest if you can & let your colon heal.
Hang in there....it took about 2 weeks for the Align to get in my system. This disease I believe may be hereditary...my grandmother had it.
Here's hoping you feel better soon. Take care.

Thanks for the quick reply. You have given me hope and comfort. I have been worried that I will always need to live with this level of pain. That said, today the pain has started to subside. It's Saturday and I started this med regimen on Tuesday. Did you have the IBS before the diverticulitis? I understood the ER doc to say that I had IBS because of the antibiotics. I have tried to research this on-line but can only find references to chronic IBS. Am hoping my symptoms will eventually go away. Did yours? Like you I am supposed to be going to Argentina in June. I have never given a thought about traveling. I'll see how I feel in a month. Thanks again and I will be sure to stay on the Align.

[meee]

I'm on both of those after a fluid sac was removed from my gallbladder bed, several months after the gallbladder was taken.
I feel sick to my stomach, always feel full even if I don't eat and I don't much because I feel nauseous. And the greenish blackish diarrhea is a problem too. Plus, none of my gut pain has gone away. I got a Rx for a pain killer.

[meeeee]

I quit taking the stuff. Nausea went away by morning and the rate at which I'm shooting chocolate is decreasing.

[HELP]

Can diverticulitis cause diarrhea like white/yellow puss maybe and lots of gas?

[Laurie Ausley]

I had two attacks of diverticulitis last year that were 10 weeks apart. The first time I spent 2 days in the hospital on IV antibiotics. The 2nd time I had a very serious infection and spent 8 days in the hospital on flagyl, cipro and Leviquin.
My colon Dr thinks the first infection never really went away. Now a year later I feel that dull ache in my lower left abdomen. Went to colon Dr and he prescribed cipro & flagyl. I haven't had the metallic taste like I did when I was on IV flagyl. The problem is, the only way they know for sure (before you are doubled over in pain) if the infection is coming back is a CT scan. I also eat healthy and never thought I'd get a disease like this but my grandmother had it and she weighed 100 lbs soaking wet and had an organic garden. So diet isn't everything like some things you read make you believe. Also, other things like ovarian cysts give you the same type of pain.

[Joy]

Hi Laurie,
This is a very frustrating disease and I do not know what the statistics are for poeple who get it once having a recurrance. In my case I had about one attack a year for the first 3 years, then about 2 a year for the next several. Last year, after 7 years, I go to the point where the antibiotics did not cure it, they just suppressed it and when I came off back it came. The symproms changed a lot over the years. Originally it was severe sharp pain but the pain got less and less with each attack. Instead I started to suffer during the attacks with low blood pressure, nausea and vomiting and I would occasionally just pass out... more like a flu type symptom. Anyway, I had surgery in December 2009 and have just felt better and better ever since. Although I still have diverticula in the remainder of my large intestine I have not have any diverticulitis so far. I am so glad I went ahead with the surgery and got my life abck! Good Luck and feel better soon, Joy

[Norma]

I had my first bout of diverticulitis in July '09. I was given the Cipro/Flagly combination without any discussion of the side affects. I came home from the hospital after 8 days of misery only to endure 10 more days of diarrhea, vomiting, thrush and a yeast infection. I lost 22 pounds in 20 days. Now, the pain in my left shoulder is intolerable. When I spoke to my physician about this he told me that would he could legally tell me is that tendonitis is a symptom from the Cipro in young people in their teen or twenties. But, then he told me that he has a number of patients that have been on this combination of drugs my age that are complaining of the same thing. I just turned 60 years old and have been miserable since I took this medicine. I thought it would clear up by now. I am interested to know if there are others that are middle aged and experiencing the same reactions.

[Joy]

Norma wrote:

I had my first bout of diverticulitis in July '09. I was given the Cipro/Flagly combination without any discussion of the side affects. I came home from the hospital after 8 days of misery only to endure 10 more days of diarrhea, vomiting, thrush and a yeast infection. I lost 22 pounds in 20 days. Now, the pain in my left shoulder is intolerable. When I spoke to my physician about this he told me that would he could legally tell me is that tendonitis is a symptom from the Cipro in young people in their teen or twenties. But, then he told me that he has a number of patients that have been on this combination of drugs my age that are complaining of the same thing. I just turned 60 years old and have been miserable since I took this medicine. I thought it would clear up by now. I am interested to know if there are others that are middle aged and experiencing the same reactions.

Hi Morma, I am 54 and had surgery last year. Prior to that during my attackes I was unable to tolerate the Flagyl... horrible diarrhea and nausea. I took Cipro for about 3 month before my surgery more or less continuously because if I came off the pain would come back because I could not get over the underlying infection. I did start to get tendonitis in the joints of my fingers and thumbs and knew it was a side effect but since most antibiotics have side effect and otherwise Cipro worked wll for me I stuck with it. Mostly the tendonitis is gone although I still have a little in my thumbs. I believe it is revesible but can take a long time. Tendonitis can be extremely painful and seems to mostly recover with lots of reat. I have a little portable ultrasound at home that I bought on the internet which has been very useful for muscle and tendon issues over the years, you might want to consider getting one or going to a good Physiotherapist. I hope you feel better soon, Joy

[Dragonflywings]

Wow Im glad I read this post have been on flagyl for an infection which seems to have not cleared from the attack which had me in hospital for 5 days. This stuff makes me feel so crappy most of the day lol, I finish it today so hopefully will start feeling better, have lost 6kgs very quickly and although that is good its not good the way ive lost it. You guys make me feel a little better knowing that this is all 'normal' struggles of this delightful thing we have

[Carol]

I tool flagyl with penecillin for 10 days; 500 milligrams each for a tooth abcess. As soon as the antibiotics were done I saw a dentist who deadened the area with lidocaine (sp?) to work on the tooth and did the same 7 days later (root canal). I have felt like crap since taking the flagyl. Initially I was depressed, sick to my stomach, had blurred vision and nervous. To date I am still very shaky, losing weight and urinating quite often. Could these symptoms be side effets of the flagyl?

[maya]

Many people suffer side effects of these drugs. I am one of them. I had seizures and still have tendon damage throughout my body after taking fluoroquinolones (cipro & levaquin). Others report central nervous system problems, vision problems, tinnitus, etc. There's tons more info about this on the yahoo discussion group at http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/fqtoxici...
and also at http://www.fqresearch.org/

Flagyl gives me peripheral neuropathy. Within hours of taking it my left shoulder starts hurting and fingers in my left hand start tingling/numbing.

[Marianne]

This is my 3d attack of Diverticulits over a 2yr period. The 1st two, I did ok, but now I'm totally nonfunctional on the antibiotics [Cipro & Flagyl] The anti nausea med, phenergan, gave me a severe "burning-like" reaction up my chest & I'm totally miserable. I actually stopped the meds after 3 days but know I need to resume as the symptoms are still active. These have been the most miserable days of my life. I think the treatment is worst then the disease.

[Joy]

Marianne, you have my greatest sympathy. Stay on clear liquids for at least several days and then a regular liquid diet for several more. This will give your colon the chance to rest. I was unable to take Flagyl because it gave me terrible diahrea and nausea. I was able to just take Cipro which did help to fight the infection on it's own in my case. Maybe you could try re-introducing the Cipro first? Good Luck and I hope things start to improve for you soon, Joy