Clindamycin Side Effects Can Be Serious

Urgent Message from Portland to the abscessed tooth person:
My husband Dan took the same drug clindamycin for a infection on his leg and had the same symptoms with the non stop diarrhea and did get C-Difficle. Nine days in critical condition and 41 days total in the hospital and rehabilitation. He lost his large intestine and gall bladder. He has an illestomy now. Please inform your readers. It has drastically changed his life. Thanks, Camilla and Dan

I read with interest the comments concerning diarrhea and C. Diff. My 25yo daughter was having digestive issues and had an endoscopy to help diagnose the problem. Within days she developed worsening, unrelenting diarrhea. Thinking it was a gastrointestional virus or part of her stomach problem, she suffered through it for nearly 2-3 weeks. Finally after losing weight and being unable to eat without rushing to the bathroom, she called her family doctor. She saw a partner in the practice who immediately suspected C. Diff after learning of the endoscopy procedure. (Apparently, this is how the C. Diff infection was introduced.)

A stool culture was ordered for confirmation. It would be through the weekend, though, before the results were in. The first stool culture was negative. The doctor ordered a second culture. Again, it would take a couple of days for the results. For a long time, I had been trying to get my daughter to try eating yogurt to help with her stomach problems and now her diarrhea. Finally, after the false negative culture result, I convinced her to try it.

The brand of yogurt I have always eaten is Stonyfield. She ate 3-4 servings per day until the results from the second culture were back. This time it was positive for C. Diff. But her diarrhea had stopped! The doctor prescribed appropriate medication just to be on the safe side. My daughter was astounded by the effect eating yogurt had had on her C. Diff infection. Her doctor was amazed as well and took note of the Stonyfield yogurt effect!

He now recommends it for his patients. Needless to say, we continue to eat this particular yogurt regularly. My daughter's stomach issues have improved significantly. I really feel that Stonyfield yogurt was literally a lifesaver for my daughter and I pass the word to everyone I know. Maybe this can help others as well.

I had the same problem after taking clindamycin. Probiotics did not help me. My gastroenterologist did tests for all sorts of pathogens (including Clostridium) and eventually she recommended a colonoscopy. That also found nothing wrong, but following the procedure, my diarrhea cleared up (expensive treatment? coincidence? who knows, but I'm much better now).

Thank you for printing the letter re clindamycin. I had a far more serious reaction to the drug. Why is it still on the market and why do dentists prescribe it?

I had a root canal done at the end of January of this year. The dentist prescribed clindamycin. I began to have serious diarrhea and three days later called 911 and the paramedics took me to the hospital. After I was examined in their emergency department, they transported me by ambulance to Kaiser Hospital.

I spent a week in the hospital with C. diff and finally went home with a prescription for Vancomycin. This prescription was for a six week period, followed by an additional six week session and when the diarrhea returned again, for an additional six week session. I think I am finally on the way to recovery. It was interesting to see that this wasn't an isolated case.

I am taking clindamycin as a preventative measure, after a tooth extraction. It seems I feel really terrible within about 20 minutes of taking it. I get very tired, achy, mild sore throat and ear pain. It may be from the extracted tooth, but maybe not, because it wasn't infected and is healing normally.

I have also felt depressed. Are these side effects reported with this antibiotic? All I see are diarrhea/GI side effects. Thanks.

I had an infection in a tooth and the dentist prescribed Clindamycin. Awful stuff. Every time I took a dose I got sick to my stomach if I didn't make sure to eat crackers with it. It took almost the entire week of dosage to make the toothache go away. I took the last pill two days ago.

Now, I have terrible diarrhea and skin that feels like it's on fire with a rash that is getting worse. The itching is unbearable. I had researched the possible side effects when I first got the prescription and started taking pro-biotics right away to make sure that I didn't get the diarrhea. Obviously, that didn't work. Thanks much to the "Mom" who wrote to tell about the yogurt. My husband is on his way to the store now.

I found a site that shows the results of 12 clinical trials for Clindamycin. Of the 126 people who participated in the trials, 62 ended up with diarrhea. 80 ended up with an itchy rash.
WHY IS THIS STILL ON THE MARKET???

I was prescribed Clindamycin following a root canal and had to stop the medication after 4 days due to severe heart burn (that was stated as a possible serious side effect in the info given to me by the pharmacist). After stopping the medication it took a couple of days for the heartburn to subside. 2 1/2 weeks later I had diarrhea, fever, chills, and body aches and presumed I was getting the flu.

The other symptoms subsided within a few days but the diarrhea continued for a week. After see my doctor she confirmed it was C difficle as a result of the Clindamycin. She now prescribed Flagyl for the C difficle.

I had an IV of Clindamycin in the ER followed by a ten day course of the antibiotic to clear up an ear infection.

I developed diarrhea within a few days of taking the drug but was instructed I needed to continue the full course of the drug.

One week after treatment was still having diarrhea and abdominal discomfort, I was put on Flagyl (metronidazole) for ten days. The diarrhea disappeared within three days and abdominal pain subsided. I was put on the BRAT diet Bananas, Rice, Yogurt and Tea. It was all I could eat.

Three days after the Flagyl treatment the diarrhea and abdominal discomfort, now severe reappeared. A stool test was then done negative for C Diff.

I was put back on Flagyl for 21 days. I was sent for a Cat Scan, which revealed minor issues but no outstanding problems. I was then sent for a colonoscopy which again revealed nothing outstanding. Biopsy taken from colon was negative. Blood work for other potential conditions all negative.

Still not right a week after colonscopy was put back on Flagyl again for 10 days and currently still on, abdominal pain minimal, no diarrhea, but gastro system still not functioning properly.

Be careful very careful when prescribed Clindamycin.

My 19 yo college-aged son was rxed Clindamycin by a podiatrist after tx for his foot infection. He has Type 1 Diabetes (insulin pump) since age 9 and also Hypothyroidism. WELL he had a severe allergic reaction with full body rash and general weakness. That was over 2 months ago...

We've tried acidophilus and Florastor...no help.... His appetite post-rx decreased rapidly and he has lost 15 lbs in 2 months, also had increased fatigue, muscle weakness and diarrhea. Now his MDs are saying that due to severe reaction, this may have triggered onset of Addison's disease and/or diabetic gastroparesis. As you can guess we are VERY DISTRAUGHT about why this happened and why this medication remains on the market!!!

HELP! Words cannot express how badly I feel about bringing my diabetic son to the podiatrist and having this happen. PLEASE BAN THIS MEDICATION ASAP!!!

I had a bad tooth infection (the dentist wanted to pull the tooth), and I couldn't eat much with the tooth pain. He prescribed Clindamycin. I'm relatively stubborn 44 year old with a rock hard gut. Around the same time I was taking the Clindamycin, I was constipated, some diarrhea, and horrible cramping.

I wasn't allergic to antibiotics so I didn't think of that. I ate prunes, fiber and anything to relieve the constipation, but it caused more pain. My wife wanted me to go to the hospital, but I didn't think it was serious enough. Then it felt like someone shot a flaming spear through my lower left abdomen (that floored me), and I had my wife call 911.

I had been on other medications for other conditions, and told the hospital that I never had so much as a stomach ache and that the only new drug was the clindamycin. They admitted me and found I had a perforation in my colon that led to diverticulitis.

I spent 6 days in the hospital, then I changed doctors and got a stronger antibiotic. The pain subsided so I said that I wanted to go home. The put a pick line in my arm (a tube for the IV), that leads near the heart. I plug Zyson antibiotics into it and run the tube down my shirt and in my pocket (the cannister has gas in it).

I've been out of the hospital for almost 3 weeks with no pain, but I can't eat normal food, I'm still on antibiotic IVs, I've gotten 5 CT Scans (like 400 X-rays each), and it shows improvement, but a way to go, so I have no idea when this will be over. I figured today that I would check on this drug, and although it wasn't exactly the side effect listed, and I'm not 100% sure the drug caused it, I don't know what to do. Even though I'm out of the hospital, I can't do anything heavy with my good arm because it tears the pick line out.

I never had an intestinal issue in my life, and judging by the posts here, I can't think of anything else, but if anyone knows of side effects like this, please let me know.

Thanks

I was prescribed clindamycin for a tooth abscess, which cleared up right away. I took yogurt with it from the start, so had no major problems until I finished the prescription. I then developed heartburn (severe) and a rash, which cleared up with treatment. However, my digestive system has now been messed up for 4 months.

I have had a colonoscopy and several lab tests. No colitis was found, but I am still having frequency, despite daily probiotics and daily immodium. Now I have developed arthritic pain in places I never had it before. Does anyone know if there could be a connection between the clindamycin and joint pain?

I was given Clindamycin after a tooth extraction. I now wish I had the tooth back. At first the rash and I went right to the doctor, she threw the pills away and said the rash would probable get worse before it got better. 3 days latter my husband dragged me to the doctors again (sometimes having a high threshold of pain works against you). I had been in bed for 2 days and he says he went to bed with his wife and woke up with Barney the Dinosaur.

The rash was from head to toe, the itching unbearable. The Doctor sent me straight to the emerg. One look and they hooked me right up to an I.V. full of steroids. This got me out of bed but did not change the rash much. Then they had to check for kidney and liver failure. So far so good.

They sent me home that night and told me to come back the next day. That day I was told my urine had blood and other deposits in it, and they were going to give more steroids but it raised my blood sugar too high. They say maybe 2 weeks or so for the rash to go away . Yes, really wish I had that old tooth back now. ITCH ITCH ITCH.

I have been taking 300mg of Clindamycin a day for 6 months now, to try and prevent a recurring gland infection. I read similar awful accounts about this drug online beforehand, so have been taking probiotic yogurt daily and have had no problems other than going to toilet half an hour after taking each pill.

Believe me, it took some guts to take it after reading reports like this, but the infection is serious and deadly and the other antibiotics were not suitable, and I'm here to balance out the other reports, as some people have no choice but to try it.

Obviously some people have terrible side effects and should stop clindamycin immediately - I'd recommend they also take probiotics for months afterwards too. It is a fact of life that all drugs have serious side effects for some people, and if there is a lesson to be learned, it is this - only take drugs that are absolutely necessary and be on the lookout and on google for side effects. Believe me, my family learned the hard way with Zyrtec.

I was given CLINDAMYCIN after having a root canal. I developed a horrible vaginal itching almost at once. I thought this was a "typical" yeast infection caused by taking antibiotics so I tried to treat it myself with eating yogurt and using Monostat to NO AVAIL. What agony. I would take the tooth pain back gladly as I feel there are ants crawling all over me.

Nothing helps. Not multiple soaks in the tub, cold compresses.... nothing. Of course I stopped taking the evil drugs but just 5 pills have me in utter misery.

My husband doesn't have the diarrhea side effect, but since being prescribed clindamycin in June, he has been miserable with increased bloating and gas. Our primary care physician dismissed it as "swallowed air," but we're convinced it's more serious than that. He has eaten yogurt and is taking probiotics, but it doesn't seem to be helping. Last night the burping changed to hiccups that lasted for several hours. I'm thinking we need to see a gastroenterologist.

I was given topical clindamycin for acne. After being on it for 4 months I started getting depressed. I felt tired all the time. Then I started having severe bloating. After a few weeks of those things, the severe abdominal pain and bloody stools started. ( normally I am a very healthy person with a lot of energy) After reading about the side effects of clindamycin, I called the pharmacist and told her what was happening.

She said it wouldn't happen if I was taking a topical form of clindamycin. I told her indeed, I was having these severe reactions from taking the topical drug. After realizing the antibiotic was destroying the "good bacteria" in my system and leaving the dangerous bacteria to thrive and create all sorts of havoc in my system, I stopped putting it on my face and I also started eating yogurt and taking probiotics. A few days have gone by. So far, I am feeling much better.
Please beware of this drug.

I am about the same age as your daughter and I got prescribed this medication for teeth problems, I just started it this morning but it looks like I will NOT be taking it again and will be asking for a different medication!

Can the diarrhea side effect happen 2 months after going off Clyndamycin?

PEOPLE'S PHARMACY RESPONSE: C. DIFF ASSOCIATED DIARRHEA COULD START SEVERAL WEEKS AFTER STOPPING CLINDAMYCIN. WE DON'T KNOW ABOUT 2 MONTHS.

I'm a 30 year old healthy active athletic male.

One month ago, I was prescribed Clindamycin for my root canal as an alternative to Penicillin. I took 2 pills just before leaving the dentists office. Not even 10 minutes into my drive home, I could tell my stomach was uneasy.

I started having diarrhea that same day and up to 6 times per day.

Even though my prescription was only for one week, I still have diarrhea everyday and it's been one month later.

I've lost about 8 lbs in one month and to be honest I'm very slender as it is so I'm not trying to lose any weight. I eat normally but everything (even liquids like chamomile tea) triggers the runs.

The difference between what I'm experiencing and what others report is that I don't have any abdominal cramping and I don't feel weak or tired. Just loose stools for now.

I"m going to see a doctor next week because I'm worried that by not doing anything I'm going to cause irreparable damage to my intestines.

I am having severe heartburn from Clyndamycin and trouble swallowing (very painful). I am wondering how dangerous this is?

I'm having the same issue with the heartburn. This is my 4th pill. I'm done with this....

I was experiencing severe acne problems and was prescribed clindamycin 300mg to be taken once a day at night after meal. After one week I felt sharp pains in my chest, lungs, heart that I can't eat, sleep or go to college. There's no diarrhea though. The doctor told to stop taking the medicine for 2 days but even after one week the pain is still there and my acne is worse. Will the yogurt help?

I have been taking clindamycin for two days. I don't have any stomach problems. But I do have depression, flu symptoms and no appetite. I will not be taking anymore after tonight and plan on starting a probiotic and liver cleanse tomorrow.

My dentist prescribed clindamycin for a tooth infection. It took care of that in short order but caused a case of diarrhea that has lasted from thanksgiving until today January 12th. I have spent $175 in blood and stool tests to try to determine what was the matter with me.

The c diff test came back negative but the health practitioner suspected it was a false negative and prescribed flagyl to see if that would clear up the diarrhea. It did so within two days of starting treatment!

I guess clindamycin is about the only option for people allergic to penicillin; but now I know watch out for. Good luck to you out there, I hope this helps.
Mark

I was prescribed clindamycin for a tooth extraction. I am not allergic to penicillin so I don't know why it was given to me. I received NO warning about this and was on painkillers afterward.

Three weeks later, I was in ICU in septic shock with diarrhea, fever and blood pressure in the 50s with the mean in the 30s and 40s. No blood was getting to my organs and they were beginning to shut down.

I am so grateful to be here to be able to write this. I am really wondering why this is allowed to be given out. I was taking probiotics with it but it almost killed me anyway.

Honestly, I am so upset right now that I have contacted a lawyer. Something needs to be done. Dentists give this out too freely. Who knew having a tooth removed could kill you? I am home now recovering and I pray that this is not something that I will have to live with forever.

Beware of clindamycin and help spread the word that this drug needs to be banned. C-diff is a highly contagious disease and the causes need to be stopped and clindamycin is one of the biggest.

Shaking my head, I can not believe this medicine is dispensed so casually. Yes I understand that there it is the best treatment for certain infections but it really doesn’t appear to be necessary in a lot of cases and if more commonplace drugs, such as penicillin had been used there would never be an issue, not to mention how much less expensive the penicillin treatment is.

And speaking for myself it was prescribed to me for abscessed teeth by a dentist who had taken over the practice of my previous dentist who used to prescribe penicillin for me. Point being, I really didn’t do my job in checking it out first or asking questions, I just went and got it filled. The dentist had instructed me to double the first two doses so we could jump start the drug in my system.

Tuesday, January 5th I took the first double dose in the evening, and did sit upright for actually about an hour as the pharmacist and the bottle labels both cautioned not to lie down within a half an hour of taking it. I then proceeded to bed and in less than hour was awakened by a very weird nightmare and god awful pain across my entire chest and shoulders, along with burning all through my upper digestive system.

I spent hours sitting upright trying to quell the "heartburn" I was experiencing but eventually did manage to return to bed avowing to be even more careful with the next dose I took, thinking of course that the problem had to have been with me and not yet associating the nightmare with the drug.

Next morning I take the second double dose as instructed and headed off to work tired from the rough night but still at that point thinking it must have been just me. Now as I am walking into the office building I work in I realize that the top part of my thighs ached like they had been beaten mercilessly during the night. So I am thinking, wow, okay, this is not going be a nice day. That evening I immediately take just a single dose when I get home from work, right at dinner so I can insure I will be upright for several hours before going to bed but the same thing happens again, chest and shoulder pain, aching thighs, and weird, weird nightmares that were so unsettling that they themselves would have been enough to ruin ones sleep.

The next morning, Thursday, January 7th I can barely walk because of the thigh pain and I decide I am taking no more after having done multiple searches online and seen that indeed some very dire things can and do happen with this drug. Now I would have hoped that this was the end of it and my body would commence to getting back to normal now but par to the worst was to come.

This drug decided to attack my renal gland and I know I am not explaining it right but consequentially because of the inflammation that caused and the weakening of the surrounding muscle I ended up with 4 sprains in my back, very painful sprains I might add. I am now undergoing acupuncture w/electrostim as treatment because the chiro says I am so inflamed he can not do an adjustment. Additionally icing several times a day and taking anti-inflammatories has brought relief to a degree where I can at least sleep for about 4 hours at a time.

Today is Friday the 15th and I am still having the weird nightmares and really wonder how long will it take for this to completely get out of my system and what can I do on a lay level to facilitate that?

p.s. Yes I am working in conjunction with dentist, general practioner, and the chiro for the most optimal solutions.

I had acute pharangitis in my throat, and was prescribed penacillin. My throat began to feel better, and i finished the course of antibiotics and all was well. A week later, I woke up in the middle of the night, barely able to swallow or breathe. Went to the base E.R. No fever, no other symptoms besides the insane throat pain.

After being admitted they did a CT scan and concluded that not all of the pharangitis had been killed by the penacillin and I now had a peritonsullar abscess within my tonsil. The procedure was the most awful pain i ever felt. A needle in the back of my throat 5 times, and syringes full of pus came out of my throat. My doc prescribed CLINDAMYCIN to kill the bacteria 7 days ago. The first few days, I actually felt really good, the pain started to go away, my throat felt like it was returning to normal and all was well.

Today marks the 7th and LAST day of treatment. My throat feels 100% again, but unfortunately about 3 days ago I started noticing very soft, foul smelling stool. Nausea, slight fever (99.4) and semi sharp pains in my right abdomen just below the ribs. The docs don't know what to make of it. I am beginning to get scared now.

I'm active duty military, and I'm TDY going to a school that is very important to me, but if this continues, I fear I may not get to graduate. I say take Clindamycin off the market, although it may help, these side effects arent worth it.

I have been taking Clindamycin for a tooth infection before I have a root canal tomorrow and I dread taking every single pill!! I have had the worst abdominal cramping, gas, diarrhea and not to mention the terrible heartburn. After reading everyone's warnings and side effects I am really worried about recovering from this, does anyone recommend a brand or type of probiotics that helped them recover? I would also recommend NOT to drink alcohol while taking Clindamycin!!

I am a severe type 1 diabetic and im only 21 years old. I had gotten a staph infection and was put on Clindamycin. From day one of taking the first pill which was Sept 9th 2009 I have had the non-stop diarrhea, loss of appetite and major headaches and yet to this day still have it. They have tried other meds to stop it but its not working, i also have an enlarged liver on top of that. I believe they should ban this drug!!!

having a persistent nasal odor following a bone/skin graft by the periodontist, I was given 500mg every 6hours for 10 days to clean up any bacterial infection which may have been the cause for the odor. The odor persists, but I have not experienced any of the side effects mentioned yet noticed that, with yogurt twice daily during the 10 days, that the intestinal stool actually was cleaner, following the treatment. this was 2 months ago.

I first started out with a sensitive tooth so the dentist up a cap on, that made it worse-big infection, put on Penicillin!!! So then a root canal, well he couldn't get to the very tips so I go back in next Friday for another root canal.....BUT GUESS WHAT---another infection started this week. I was put on Penicillin again but this time I had a reaction-I felt burning under my scalp!?!

So today I call my dentist and he put me on Clindamycin. I took my first pill tonight and after 5 minutes of taking it I got "heartburn" from the back of my throat all the way down to my stomach. I got on the computer to see what I could find out about side effects. Well... Thanks to this website I will NOT be taking anymore pills. I agree with everyone who said they would rather live with the tooth pain. Thank you again!!!!!!

A couple of weeks ago I had to have a tooth filled. Because I have heart valve disease, I had to take one dose of four x 150mg Clindamycin one hour before. The stomach pain was pretty bad, but I remained upright for the hour, and had no further problems. Since then, my tooth has kept hurting, and I noticed a gum ulcer that is producing pus. I went to the doctor and he prescribed 300 mg clindamycin three times a day.

So far, I have had four doses, but I felt so sick with stomach pain, and the most poisonous tasting reflux each time, and it's getting worse, I think. I feel very dizzy shortly after I can feel the drug kick in. I have had chest pains (not stomach, as I have had ulcers and also have chronic gastric reflux, and I know stomach pain), and my heart felt like it was missing beats for a short period of time about a half hour after each dose.

I also feel like it's hard to breathe. I have no rash, no chronic stomach pain, and the symptoms ease up mostly after about four hours. But I have a constant metallic taste - disgusting - and I feel dizzy. The last dose, I decided I couldn't possibly face felling like that again, but as the effects wore off, I thought, well, maybe I can try one more time. All antibiotics can cause allergies and the bowel thing. However, after reading this, I don't think I want to put myself through this again.

I'll have to wait to see the Dr on Monday, and he may not be happy, but I have already lost two days. I can't cope with more. If it's any comfort, Bactrim is far worse, and was mostly banned in Britain, for general use.

I was prescribed Clindamycin yesterday. I am going to have oral surgery to extract a wisdom tooth pretty soon and my dentist prescribed this medicine to help with the infection. I am on 150mg/3 times a day. I am also on Lortab for pain. So far, I have taken 2 of the pills. After the first one, I sat up for 30 minutes and then went to sleep because the Lortab made me extremely sleepy. I just took the second pill about two hours ago and I feel absolutely terrible.

I basically just feel sick. I'm very nauseated and my skin is itchy but that may be from the Lortab. My chest is also hurting a little and it feels like indigestion. I'm extremely nervous about taking this after seeing all of the bad reactions. I will repost on this site as I keep taking it.

KG - I have also been taking it topically for acne for 3-4 months. I stopped last week because I was developing diarrhea, and mucus/blood. It is the ONLY drug that I take, but still my doctor told me it was unlikely that it is from the clindamycin topical.

I had to show her the FDA warning which clearly states that enough can be absorbed topically to cause these effects. I am eating Stoneyfields yogurt 2-3 times a day, taking acidopholus and also started taking S. Boulardi (another probiotic). Right away (within 2 days), I had no more diarrhea and no more urgency. The blood/mucus is still there but much less. How long does it take to completely go away?

I am going to get tested for C Diff anyway, because another post (I think the mom) said that her daughter's diarrhea stopped but she still had C Diff and had to get a different antibiotic to treat it. I do not know why this is on the shelf.