Too often the unexpected results that readers experience from taking a medication are frightening. They may uncover new or surprisingly severe side effects. But sometimes people get a delightful and unanticipated surprise. This reader found that an extended course of antibiotic was able to cure asthma, though that was not the goal of taking it.
Azithromycin for a Lung Infection:
Q. Several years ago I took azithromycin for a severe lung infection. It didn’t quite go away, so I was prescribed a second round of the antibiotic.
After that, I never had an asthma attack again. I had suffered with breathing problems for over 20 years. This result seems like a miracle to me.
A Cure for Asthma?
A. David Hahn, MD, has found that some cases of wheezing that have been diagnosed as asthma may be caused by an infection with Chlamydia pneumoniae. This elusive microbe is vulnerable to antibiotic treatment with azithromycin.
Dr. Hahn has written a book with details about this approach: A Cure for Asthma? What Your Doctor Isn’t Telling You–and Why. It is published by People’s Pharmacy Press and can be found at PeoplesPharmacy.com. He does not propose that azithromycin treatment can cure asthma, but rather that a number of people with asthma symptoms that don’t respond well to treatment may benefit.
Early Infections Impair Lung Function:
Scientists in Australia and Japan have recently published a study showing that infection with C. pneumoniae early in life can cause permanent reduction of lung function and more severe allergic airway disease (AKA asthma) later in life (American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology, Apr., 2016). Detecting such an infection can be difficult, as the microbe is hard to culture and hides out inside cells.
