Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics and Risk for Polyneuropathy

Results of a recent pharmacoepidemiologic study suggest that oral fluoroquinolones are associated with an approximately twofold increase in the risk for polyneuropathy.

Primarily on the basis of case reports submitted to the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting Program, the agency recently required a change in the labeling of fluoroquinolone antibiotics to include a warning about increased risk for polyneuropathy associated with these drugs (NEJM JW Neurol Aug 29 2013). However, no data have been available to quantify this risk. Now, a case-control study sheds some light on this question. Using health claims data from the LifeLink database (which only includes data from men), investigators identified 6226 incident cases (defined as those with a first physician visit for idiopathic polyneuropathy) and 24,904 age- and disease duration–matched controls and compared the frequency of fluoroquinolone use in each group.…

Reviewing Author

Michael Benatar, MD, MS, PhD

Disclosures

Grant / Research supportNIH NeuroBioBank; ALS Association; NIH/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; NIH/National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences; FDA; Department of Defense

Editorial boardsCochrane Collaboration

Leadership positions in professional societiesMuscle Study Group Executive Committee

Michael Benatar, MD, MS, PhD

Disclosures

Editorial boardsCochrane Collaboration

Leadership positions in professional societiesMuscle Study Group Executive Committee

Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics and Risk for Polyneuropathy

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Reviewing Author