Reported and adjusted adverse events for Levaquin and it’s generic levofloxacin from 1996 through August 2019. The FDA admits that only between 1% and
10% of all adverse events to pharmaceuticals ever get reported (1).
Report Cases
Total Cases 42,566
Serious Cases (including deaths) 35,973
Death Cases 2,634
Adjusted Cases for 10% Reporting
Total Cases 425,660
Serious Cases (including deaths) 359,730
Death Cases 26,340
Obviously, if the data was adjusted for 1% the numbers would be much, much higher. From the data it is hard to extrapolate exact percentage of reporting. It is probably variable between 1% and 10%, so, using the FDA’s admission, 10% is a conservative figure for the upper, or best, scenario.
(1) Heinrich, J. (2000, February 1). Adverse drug events: Substantial problem but magnitude uncertain. Testimony Before the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, U.S. Senate. United States General Accounting Office (US GAO). Available at http://www.gao.gov/new.items/he00053t.pdf
Levaquin killed my wife of 60 years.
On October 21,2015 my wife Han an aortic
Dissection of her aorta just above her heart.
Devastating to me and our family.
Shame on you drug companies.
Jim, I am so sorry to hear of such tragic news. I wish stories such as yours were uncommon, but there are a lot of families suffering from the loss of loved ones from these horrific medications. God speed.
I was prescribed Cipro around 1993 by a Urologist because I “might have a prostate infection”. After that, and after
having (what I thought was unrelated) debilitating physical all over pain problems and fatigue, I was “diagnosed” over the following years as having multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, Lyme disease, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, probably other things, and even went to a psychologist because multiple doctors said it was “all in my head” or “psychosomatic”.
The doctor I went to for Fibromyalgia prescribed me Levaquin and I got worse.
Later, after 8 months of treatment, the psychologist sent me back to the other doctors sending them the message that my problems were physical, not psychological.
I got, as I tell it, worser and worser and I have and used a cane, a walker, crutches, and a wheel chair. I have a wheel chair ramp built for the front door and a portable ramp always out at the back door, but now am not using any of those.
The first post from J. King on Academia.com years ago gave me the best information and explanation of what was happening to me. His follow-up information was also very helpful for me to understand that there is a real problem and it was being looked into. I have spent the last 15 years going on FQ and Floxie sites reading everything from people who had discovered that they too, were poisoned and offering help where I could.
A doctor has risked his license to prescribe me a pharmaceutical that I should not have because it is a controlled substance (not related to marijuana or pain meds) and only prescribed for something I do not really have. I attribute his help as saving me, but not curing me.
I have spent quite a bit of time in the hospital this year (2019) and have had 4 heart surgeries. Nobody could explain why I have shortness of breath and complete fatigue even after just walking out to the mailbox, but the cardiologist and the electrophysiologist both feel it has nothing to due with the heart now, even though both said earlier that it was heart related because of all the damage the 4 surgeries did to the heart.
In the summer of 2019, I discovered the site put up by Jerzy Tyszkowski and Jane Crosby re: The Foundation for Fluoroquinolones Toxicity Study and Research. Talking with Jerzy on the phone, he told me that my quest to find a lab in the United States to get a DNA Adduct test for markers showing FQ poisoning was in vain. However in England or the E.U. it was relatively simple, costing 140 pounds in England. I believe he told me he had the test in France.
Now, at he end of 2019, I have discovered this site by another David, https://www.myquinstory.info/ and now know my extreme fatigue, shortness of breath, and acute weakness is directly fluoroquinolone related (caused). I am in the process of trying to communicate with David, but I am a very slow typer and need to talk, either in person or on the phone.