Can Metronidazole Make Tinnitus Worse?

Hello, I've just been prescribed Metronidazole for a gum abscess along with Amoxicillin. Is Metronidazole a no-no in terms of ototoxicity?

Thanks.

 

I've seen Metronidazole on an ototoxicity list somewhere. It's used mostly for bacterial infections.

In my case, I took it twice since I've had tinnitus and I had no spike (and my tinnitus is due to ototoxic meds so I know I need to be careful with those).

Amoxicillin is supposedly safe

I prefer Penicillin when it's possible to take it...

 

I saw Metronidazole on an ototoxic drugs list. I found that yesterday. I have been taking it for 2 days and that worries me. I think I will stop today. Can it increase tinnitus permanently?

 

I had Metronidazole intravenously along with other antibiotics to treat Sepsis. It had no effect on me at all. At the time I remember looking into all the antibiotics I had and none of them were ototoxic.

The ones I had intravenously and in very high doses were:

Metronidazole
Flucloxacillin
Amoxicillin

And orally I had:

Co-amoxiclav
Clindamycin

There was no adverse effect on my tinnitus.

 

Thank you Ed.

I just called my pharmacist, she says it's fine and I should not worry. But I am not sure how reliable she is, she did not know what ototoxicity means (so I told her what it meant, maybe she was just not familiar with the term)

Well, I trust you and I guess Metronidazole has no effect on a majority of people. But I saw it on several lists of ototoxic drugs yesterday evening and there is a member on this forum who apparently had a very loud tinnitus because of it (@RayX if I am not mistaken) so I am really scared about it. I do not know if it's psychological but this morning I felt my tinnitus was a bit louder than usual - that may also be because I worried about that all night

 

From my memory, Julien, it is not known to be ototoxic, but any drug can induce reactions from certain individuals because we are all unique.

I’m pretty sure there’s only a handful of reported cases worldwide.

 

You are right Ed, Metronidazole seems to be rarely ototoxic:

http://www.dizziness-and-balance.com/disorders/bilat/ototoxins.html

(Called metronidizole here).

 

It temporarily spiked my tinnitus twice. And I don't spike easily - so it was definitely the Flagyl.

Works great though and I took it for same reason as you and prior to that for a different bacterial infection.

Again, only a temporary spike.

Best!

 

I've just finished taking Metronidazole for 3 days. The spike caused by it was and is terrible. I stopped 2-3 days ago and the spike continues. I'm praying it's temporary but there are some depressing studies online. I can't post a link because it's a PDF but there is one where 8 patients developed tinnitus from taking Metronidazole and 6 did not recover. I would stay far, far away from this drug. I wish to God I had. I took it for suspected C diff, which it turns out I didn't have (culture came back negative 3 days later). I would wait for confirmed diagnosis if you are prescribed this medicine for that reason.

 

Metronidazole rarely affects tinnitus, but it is highly "toxic" drug. I took it for C Diff (horrible condition) and I can assure it is a very hard drug. I could only took it 5 days of a 10-day of treatment. Regarding ototoxicity, in most cases it is just temporary.

 

I'm just curious, because my grandma died partly because of C Diff and since then I'm very afraid of the condition. I hope you are alright.

Did you take vancomycin or Dificid as well? Both of them seem ototoxic too, but are considered more advanced in the treatment of C Diff than Flagyl.

 

Hello Kriszti! C Diff is horrible condition, I am very sorry about your grandma. Indeed it is a condition with high mortality rates, and I am just under 40s.

I took Metronidazole; I wanted to avoid Vancomycin due to tinnitus (even if in oral form it is way less risky to the ears), and Dificid is not available in my country, despite being the best drug for C Diff.

I would say Dificid is not ototoxic (it stays in the intestines and only attacks Clostridium Bacteria, does not alter the gut flora).

C Diff is a very complicated disease, but do not worry. The risk of getting it increases with the use of some antibiotics, long term antibiotic use or if you've been in a hospital and take antibiotics at the same time. If you take antibiotics, also taking Lactobacillus Rhamnosus and Saccharomyces Boulardii reduces the chances of Clostridium.

Metronidazole was really hard, very neurotoxic (not ototoxic), but had strong psychological effects, spasms in the ears, all of which is not unusual. I have had no recurrence, but in case I have it again I would go for oral liquid Vancomycin or, preferably, Dificid if I can get it.

Best wishes.

 

Thank you, I hope you never ever relapse.

I looked it up somewhat thoroughly, I have a list of worst offender antibiotics to avoid. Made quite a big impact on my health anxiety, because I saw what it did to my grandmother and read a ton about how truly awful C Diff is and was very anxious about not getting it. How ironic that I considered Neomycin safe for clostridium and it's one of the most ototoxic antibiotics.

I hope that none of us will ever need it, but have you considered fecal transplant? In my country, it's kind of unorthodox, but has good results as far as I know. Dificid is hardly available here as well and expensive, standard procedure is still Flagyl (called Klion here) and if it doesn't work, then IV vancomycin.

 

Hello Kriszti,

I just finished 7 days of a 10-day Metronidazole course (3 times a day X 500 mg) and it definitely raised the level of my tinnitus. So not sure if it affects everyone the same way.

I was wondering if anyone else has taken it and did the tinnitus level go back down and, if so, how long did it take to return to the baseline?

 

In my case, it was either I took it or I would die. I had large intravenous doses, and fortunately, it had no effect on my tinnitus whatsoever. I was just thankful to be alive.

 

Metronidazole is very toxic from my personal experience too.

(Peeing black...)

 

Hi Ed.

Hope you're well.

Can I ask if you've ever had 2g IV Cefazolin?

 

Not to my knowledge, Deb, unless they snuck some in my IV at some point (which they could easily do). I only know what was put in me because I always ask since I've had tinnitus, otherwise they could infuse whatever they wanted without asking for any kind of permission.

 

Saw that you asked me this on another recent thread, but I'll respond here.

Only 8 tinnitus cases have ever been reported - 1 per 8000 use. The (8) is also suspect of another medication.

Seems to be completely tinnitus safe.

 

Hi Greg,

Thank you so much for your reply. How are you going?

I was doing really well (non intrusive tinnitus) for several months until I had to receive a 2g dose of IV Cefazolin for a septic knee bursa, followed by a week's worth of oral Keflex (which I had never had a problem with before).

I took a bunch of antioxidants in case. I don't think it did much but thought it couldn't hurt to try.

Can't seem to figure out the source of the infected bursa, which is lingering. Though, I do have a probable abscessed upper canine tooth that is requiring either an extraction or root canal.

As it is close to the front, it will leave a gap, but really worried about causing a further worsening of my already temperamental tinnitus?

Any suggestions?

 

Thanks Ed!

How are you getting on?

I really appreciate your input. I have become quite paranoid about meds and procedures since tinnitus.

 

Not too bad, Deb. Thanks for asking. I hope you're well.

 

Hi @DebInAustralia.

None of the databases that I use, list IV Cefazolin as a cause of tinnitus, but Cefazolin can have side effects and a few of these side effects for some could temporarily spike tinnitus.

Cefazolin and Tinnitus, a phase IV clinical study of FDA data - eHealthMe

Cefazolin: effectiveness, side effects, alternatives (11,291 reports) - eHealthMe

Extraction or root canal? There a slight chance that either could increase tinnitus.

Extraction - 1/150
Root canal - 1/200

 

@DebInAustralia, was it you who found a safe pain med?

How are you doing - update?

Hugs.

 

Hey Greg! Hugs right back at you. How are you getting on?

I had the root canal a few days ago. It was an upper canine tooth, so not a lot of drilling, and no need for a crown. Thankful for that. No complications.

Tinnitus still vocal however. I was in a good place a month ago. Hope I can get back there again. I don't think the IV Cefazolin did this.

Thank you very much for the info you provided. Was reassuring.