Levaquin and baseball bat

I saw my family doctor on May 16th for a new onset UTI. I hadn't had one of these in about 8 years but I knew how bad they could get if you didn't get them treated right away. I did the over the counter URISTAT for 2 days until I got an appointment. After doing the UA dipstick, they confirmed my UTI because of the high leukocytes and gave me sample packets of LEVAQUIN 500 mg. b.i.d. for 5 days. I went home thinking, "Hey, this will be easy and I will feel great in a few days." I WAS NEVER SO WRONG ABOUT SOMETHING IN MY WHOLE LIFE!!!! I took my first dose that evening and went to bed. I woke up the next morning with a headache so bad that I almost passed out when I lifted my head off the pillow. The UTI went away after a few days, but the migraine stayed for over 2 weeks. The left side of my neck felt like I had been hit from behind with a baseball bat and my scalp became so sore from the pain that I couldn't even use a blow dryer on my hair. I made 2 more trips back to the doctor complaining of the horrible migraine headaches, light sensitivity, neck pain and joint pain. He put me on IMITREX, PROPANOLOL, APAP, and FLEXERIL to control the migraines. I MAXED OUT THE DAILY DOSAGE ON THESE MEDS EVERY DAY WITH NO RELIEF! I went back to the doctor again and he decided to run some lab tests. The next day, my headache had started to get better but I noticed a lump under my left armpit (large pea size) and that I had significant joint pain in my right middle and index finger. My middle finger would hardly bend in the mornings when I got up and the stiffness in my neck was still there. Later that day on my way out for a mini vacation with my family, my doctor called to tell me that my ANA had come back positive and he wanted to send me to a Rheumatologist to rule out things like LUPUS, RA, etc. Needless to say, I was totally freaked out for the remainder of my trip until I went back to the doctor to review my ANA Titer. My titer was high at 1:160, but he keeps telling me not to worry because this happens all of the time and an ANA and high titer is not definitive. I want to also note that one of my friends and my husband have also had very similar experiences. She was convinced by the physicians that she had Lymphoma because of her ANA and titer and my husband was certain that he had RA. Both are negative!
I am still concerned about all of this even though I am feeling better and it may be that I have permanent side effects from this. I was a totally healthy person and there was nothing going on besides a UTI until the LEVAQUIN was introduced. It has been almost a month since I took this drug and the things I have been reading online are horrible. I am sure that I will never take one of these antibiotics again. My advice to anyone else is to READ< READ> READ! There are some excellent websites out there and of coures the blogs are great for information from other patients. A good site for information about positive ANA's is:
http://www.rheumatology.org/public/factsheets/fana.asp
Also, read up on LEVAQUIN and the other FLUOROQUINOLONES. I did not know that these are the drugs that will be used to treat people in the event of a biological war. It's pretty scary....

I was given a 10 day dose of LEVAQUIN for a mild bronchitis/respiratory ailment on Jan. 29, 2008. I took 1 500mg pill for the full ten days. Three days after I stopped taking this medication, I experienced incredibly painful swelling in both knees. I could barely walk, and couldn't bend my knees. I was scared, upset, and in absolute misery. I spent a week literally throwing myself backwards onto chairs. It was unbelievable. When I could finally get to my normal health care provider 5 days later, she immediately identified the culprit as the Levaquin I had taken. She said she knew it to cause people's tendons to burst. It was obvious since it was both knees that it was not an injury and I never had any other problem with my legs. I am, or shall I say I was an avid walker. I was told to see an orthopedic doctor if I had not improved in one week. I had not improved in a week. The orthopedic doctor sent me for an MRI which showed irreversible, permanent cartilage damage in my left knee. The right knee he didn't MRI at the time, saying he could determine what he needed to know from the one knee and would only be able to do corrective surgery on my knees in 6 week intervals. This horrible drug has permanently altered my way of life. I was a 53 year old active, ambulatory adult who would walk miles a day. Two months later, I still have constant knee pain, cannot stand for long periods of time without leaning on something and can no longer kneel, etc. I can only walk around a bit and if I'm on my feet for long periods of time I experience knee, ankle pain and swelling. I sent a report to the FDA who obviously cares nothing about this situation, since I'm not the only unsuspecting person to have this happen. I've been studying this drug now and there was evidence in animal clinical trials of joint and tendon damage, To me it would have been no different an experience if someone had come up and hit me with a baseball bat across both knees. I am permanently damaged from Levaquin. I think it's criminal this drug is given to younger ambulatory adults at all.

DO NOT TAKE THIS POISON!
flu like symptoms, headaches for 2 wks, nausea,
extreme leg pain as if struck by a baseball bat,
very weak, no energy for several weeks following...
It has been over a year and still not completely
recovered!! I can't beleive this is still being prescribed.

I WAS prescribed 500 milligrams of Levaquin for 21 days. After 14 days on the medication I could barely walk. My achilles tendons felt like someone had hit me with a baseball bAT. That was in January. It is now August and I still have pain. My thighs hurt and I can barely lift my legs to walk up stairs. My knees ache severely, but it is mostly the weakness that is bothering me. I always had strong legs. Now I find it difficult to get up from a sitting position. I can't imagine what it will be like in a few more years. I am under a new doctor's care and am trying to weed out any other causes. I plan to sue if I do not regain the strength in my legs.

wow, I was prescribed levaquin 9 days ago for a UTI and started having a pain in my neck 2 days agoI didn't give it much thought as this happens off and on in that spot over the years. Then last night my right arm developed deep and severe pain as if I had worked out wrong. Except I haven't worked out in months. I became suspicious and decided to look up side effects of the drug, something to this point have never felt motivated to do, to see if joint pain was listed as a possible side effect. I happened upon this site and found that as a recurring and prominent side effect. I am very grateful to find this site. I was considering refilling my precription as I feared my infection was getting worse. I had sever prostitis ten years ago which caused weakness and muscle pain in my legs and abdominal area. I now realize that my fear of that recurring is probably based on symptoms which are for me simply a minor side effect of this medication. My arm though is in severe pain, like I was hit by a baseball bat. I am discarding my last two pills now, realizing that the medication has probably helped me clear up the UTI. I am hoping that I will recover in the next few days from the pain which clearly appears to have been induced by the "cure". Once again this site has been very very valuable to me in confirming my suspicion. Thanks again
Richard W