Levaquin and cellulitis

Sleeplessness and when I could sleep, I had terrible nightmares. I was taking Levaquin 500 for cellulitis in my finger. My father had passed away recently so at first I attributed the nightmares and restlessness to that. But after thinking about the aggitation, the sleeplessness, the nausea, etc...and never having taking the medication before, I decided to research the side effects of Levaquin. I have completed the 10 days prescribed round of medication, but my finger is not healed. I go back to the doctor tomorrow. I will ask for a different anitbiotic!!

Wow! I am shocked. I have taken Levaquin on several occasions in the last two years for various infections - cellulitis, pneumonia and UTI. Over time my legs, knees and right hip have become so painful that I have actually checked the terms of my life insurance policy because I did not think I could go on. I have been attributing my severe pain, which is not helped by narcotic pain medication to any significant degree, to an old fall injury, new over-use injuries, being overweight, not being fit, etc. I never thought for a minute that my only available antibiotic choice, Levaquin, could be the culprit. I was just researching severe leg pain on the net (again) and stumbled on this site. I have had unusual headaches, loss of appetite, and of course severe leg, knee and hip pain, as well as weird visual perceptions (I keep thinking the light is too low) and horrible muscle pain in my right thigh and calf. I had a trip and fall accident and now have lymphedema in the right thigh and have had many other complications since '92. When I went back to my doctor last Monday, he told me to take a second course of Levaquin for cellulitis in the thigh when I complained about the horrible pain in my thigh muscle, knee and hip. Does he really have no idea that Levaquin has these serious side effects being reported? I am now terrified that these painful conditions are going to persist for a long time to come. I can barely walk at this point and I have chronic severe pain and I have missed many days of work since taking these last three rounds of Levaquin (500 mg. x 10 days each) since September. Again, wow!

I took Levaquin 500 mg. because of recurring Cellulitis. I will NEVER take this antibiotic again! I fell into a sense of hopeless and felt like I was hit by a mack-truck. I have been experiencing joint pain like never before. THe doctors have said it is okay to return to exercising, but i will not likely be able to do that because of the ongoing joint pain. My knees, feet, ankles, wrists and fingers continue to be painful, even 2 weeks after being off this medication. I continue to struggle with ongoing low-grade nausea and occasional dizziness, which is scary when driving! This is the worst medication in the world and should be taken off the market. I am PRAYING that these side effects go away.

4/10/07 from Lynn H.
My husband is 49 and has peripheral vascular disease which causes him to have ongoing problems with leg/ankle edema and cellulitis. He is standing and moving all day for his job and this increases his inflammation and edema. The doctor put him on Levaquin 750 mg./day for the cellulitis.
SIDE EFFECT: Hard pounding heartbeats, skipped beats, fast heart beats. He has gone off the medication for a few days, then just took one a few hours ago. The hard heartbeats started up again, as heard through my stethoscope. Heart rate in the 60s, but many skips and hard pounds. He will not continue this horrible medication and contact the doctor. This is a "dangerous" medication.

I have just had two bouts of cellulitis in my legs. I had some side effects from strong antibotics, so was put on leviquin, after taking for 5 days (6 days is a full RX), I am experiencing tightness in my throat, my mouth seems to be "raw" making it hard to eat. Everything I try to eat or drink is extremely bitter. Also, I seem to have some joint pain.

I was just recently in the hospital for treatment of cellulitis and my doctor ordered Levaquin via IV. I had taken it orally before about a year ago for a respiratory infection. 2-3 minutes into the IV being turned on I felt the worst burning sensation and pressure in my lungs like I suddenly had horrible pneumonia. Everytime I tried to breathe I had to cough like my lungs were full of fluid or something! They ran tons of tests and everything came back normal. They had to give me a shot of Benadryl and it eventually calmed down. Anyone else experience this?

I was given 750mg of levaquin for 8 days due to a cellulitis in my left knee. After taking the Levaquin I developed swelling in my leeft leg, foot and ankle and then in my right. I have had this condition now for almost a month. My legs are very soire to touch and at night feel like they are on fire. The tendons in the back of my legs are so very sore and stiff I can barely walk. My back is also affected with pain and stiffness. i have been to three doctors this past week. One ordeered an ultra-sound on my legs, thinking I may have a blood clot. Another has ordered an uoltra-sound on my chest, thinking I may be in congestive heart failure. The last one said therapy might help. None of the three seem to know the real cause. One doctor did say that Levaquin can in rare instances cause torn tendons of the legs or shoulder etc. I have no other explanation at this point but that it is the Drug. A miserable way to supposedly get over an infection!

I have been on Levaquin now for almost 2 years. Yes that's right 2 years. I was perscribed it for treatment of a recurrent cellulitis secondary to a primary lymphedema.. I have been wondering why my hands hurt and I can hardly move my knees. I never knew that Levaquin had such side effects. My Doctor never told me about this. I have been in so much pain my physical activity level has dropped to near zero.

Oops! Excuse the entry below. I goofed & hit the wrong key.
Anyhoo, here is my Levaquin story. I am 51 & was diagnosed with cellulitis on Jan. 19th of this year. I was given an IV drug, (Daptomyacin) & 500 mg of Levaquin for 16 days. Towards the end of the treatment, my joints became very achy. (mostly in my knees) I was having burning, tingling sesations throughout my body & my calves were cramping. One week after treatment, I could barely walk through our house. I normally am active, with daily walks & short jogs. Within days, I had to have knee surgery. It is now almost 5 weeks past my surgery. The achy joints, burning, cramping & tingling are still present off & on throughout my body. Although the orthopaedic surgeon did find trauma in my knee, (past fractures, etc.) I am convinced the Levaquin sped up & exacerbated the damage. Now my other knee is hurting so bad, I am starting to think that one will need surgery as well. Both my orthopaedic surgeon the infectious disease Dr. that prescribed the Levaquin dismiss the notion that Levaquin had anything to do with it or that my joints are aching because of the drug. I am thrilled I find this site, because I realize that I haven't imagined these symptoms. But the reality of these reactions is quite sobering. I have never had a bad reaction to a drug in my lifetime. This one was so sudden & severe, I had to add my account to this list. I've just started trying the Milk of Magnesia & hope it works. I too have been drinking lots of water. God bless each of you out there suffering with this & may we find some solutions soon.

I had a severe case of cellulitis, caused by a fast-moving bacteria. It was on my face. I was on Levaquin for six weeks, first at 700mg and then at 500mg. My shoulders and knees froze up and became very painful. My left foot had electrical spasms which made my life miserable. My doctor said that was probably from sciatica. I have arthritis and recently changed from Vioxx to Bextra (frying pan into the fire), and my doctor didn't seem to know about a link between Levaquin and joint pain. I only found out by reading this site. One suggestion if you have stomach problems--they gave me Protonix, a drug for acid reflux, and that kept me from having any stomach reactions to the Levaquin. I now have been off Levaquin for six days, and my joint pain has diminished by 80%. My foot pain is down to a dull ache and a lot of itching. I know that the Levaquin saved my life, but in hindsight, I wonder if there was a different drug I could have been given, that would not have caused me such severe joint and foot pain.