Overall, 7% of patients experienced nausea, 6% headache, 5% diarrhea, 4% insomnia, along with other adverse reactions experienced at lower rates.Administration of levofloxacin or other broad spectrum antibiotics is associated with Clostridium difficile associated diarrhea which may range in severity from mild diarrhea to fatal colitis. Fluoroquinoline administration may be associated with the acquisition and outgrowth of a particularly virulent Clostridium strain.More research is needed to determine the best dose and length of treatment. Overdose
Overdosing experiments in animals showed loss of body control and drooping, difficulty breathing, tremors, and convulsions. Doses in excess of 1500 mg/kg orally and 250 mg/kg IV produced significant mortality in rodents.In the event of an acute overdosage, authorities recommend unspecific standard procedures such as emptying the stomach, observing the patient and maintaining appropriate hydration. Levofloxacin is not efficiently removed by hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis. Pharmacology
Mechanism of action
Levofloxacin is a broad-spectrum antibiotic that is active against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Like all quinolones, it functions by inhibiting the DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV, two bacterial type II topoisomerases. Topoisomerase IV is necessary to separate DNA that has been replicated (doubled) prior to bacterial cell division. With the DNA not being separated, the process is stopped, and the bacterium cannot divide. DNA gyrase, on the other hand, is responsible for supercoiling the DNA, so that it will fit in the newly formed cells. Both mechanisms amount to killing the bacterium. Levofloxacin acts as a bactericide.As of 2011, the mechanism of action for the drugs musculoskeletal complications were not clear.
Levofloxacin, sold under the brand name Levaquin among others, is an antibiotic medication. It is used to treat a number of bacterial infections including acute bacterial sinusitis, pneumonia, H. pylori (in combination with other medications), urinary tract infections, chronic prostatitis, and some types of gastroenteritis. Along with other antibiotics it may be used to treat tuberculosis, meningitis, or pelvic inflammatory disease. Use is generally recommended only when other options are not available. It is available by mouth, intravenously, and in eye drop form.Common side effects include nausea, diarrhea, and trouble sleeping. Serious side effects may include tendon rupture, tendon inflammation, seizures, psychosis, and potentially permanent peripheral nerve damage. Tendon damage may appear months after treatment is completed. People may also sunburn more easily. In people with myasthenia gravis, muscle weakness and breathing problems may worsen. While use during pregnancy is not recommended, risk appears to be low. The use of other medications in this class appear to be safe while breastfeeding; however, the safety of levofloxacin is unclear. Levofloxacin is a broad-spectrum antibiotic of the fluoroquinolone drug class. It usually results in death of the bacteria. It is the left-handed isomer of the medication ofloxacin.Levofloxacin was patented in 1985 and approved for medical use in the United States in 1996. It is on the World Health Organizations List of Essential Medicines. It is available as a generic medication. In 2019, it was the 182nd most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 3 million prescriptions.