Zithromax and Ear Infections

[Shadgirl]

Well the armature with no reliable doctor yet is back again. This time with that ear infection back in my right ear and no idea what to do about it. Sorry to bother you AGAIN but they gave me Zithramax and I just learned today that it can be disastrous so I'm scared to use it now. Iv used it in the past and nothing happened. But that was before I got tinnitus. Now Iv taken two doses of it and I'm thinking it changed my tinnitus a bet. Now I'm worried about taking anymore because it can cause irreversible tinnitus that's vary loud and I REALLY don't want that. Do you know anything safer that works just as well? I'm seeing a new ENT at the Cleveland clinic next week but that's a bet too long to wait with an existing infection. If you have the time, can you please advice me on what you would take if you had chronic ear infection that is hard to get rid of?

 

[Dr. Nagler]

If you have the time, can you please advice me on what you would take if you had chronic ear infection that is hard to get rid of?

Azithromycin (Zithromax, Z-pak) is not ototoxic in the sense that it is not known to cause permanent hair cell damage. Moreover, I have not seen any good controlled data suggesting that it is contraindicated for tinnitus patients. That said, I am aware of enough anecdotal cases of individuals who have developed permanent tinnitus while on azithromycin that I personally would not recommend its use in tinnitus patients unless there were absolutely no other drug that could be prescribed in its place for the same indication. What I would do if I were you, Shadgirl, would be to call the doctor who prescribed the azithromycin for you, tell him (or her) that you have severe tinnitus, and ask that he kindly prescribe instead any antibiotic he feels appropriate for your infection other than azithromycin or an aminoglycoside.

(Just to clarify, azithromycin is not an aminoglycoside.)

Hope this helps.

stephen nagler