Levaquin Oral

In Depth

Generic Name: LEVOFLOXACIN - ORAL
Pronounced: (lev-oh-FLOX-uh-sin)

Levaquin Oral Interactions

See also How to Use section.

Your doctor or pharmacist may already be aware of any possible drug interactions and may be monitoring you for them. Do not start, stop, or change the dosage of any medicine before checking with them first.

This drug should not be used with the following medications because very serious interactions may occur:

strontium
certain drugs that affect the heart rhythm (antiarrhythmics that may cause QT prolongation such as amiodarone, dofetilide, quinidine, procainamide, sotalol)

If you are currently using any of these medications listed above, tell your doctor or pharmacist before starting levofloxacin.

Other drugs besides levofloxacin and those listed above that may affect the heart rhythm (QT prolongation in the EKG) include certain macrolide antibiotics (e.g., erythromycin, clarithromycin), and certain antipsychotic medications (e.g., pimozide, thioridazine, ziprasidone), among others. QT prolongation can infrequently result in serious (rarely fatal) fast/irregular heartbeat and other symptoms (e.g., severe dizziness, fainting) that require immediate medical treatment. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more details and for instructions on how you may reduce the risk of this effect.

Before using this medication, tell your doctor or pharmacist of all prescription and nonprescription/herbal products you may use, especially of:

"blood thinners" (e.g., warfarin)
corticosteroids (e.g., dexamethasone, prednisone)
drugs to treat diabetes (e.g., glyburide, insulin)
live bacterial vaccines (e.g., typhoid, BCG)
nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs such as ibuprofen, naproxen)
urinary alkalinizers (e.g., potassium/sodium citrate)
certain "water pills" (potassium-wasting diuretics such as furosemide, hydrochlorothiazide)

Also report the use of drugs that might increase seizure risk when combined with this medication such as isoniazid (INH), phenothiazines (e.g., thioridazine), theophylline, or tricyclic antidepressants (e.g., amitriptyline). Consult your doctor or pharmacist for details.

This medication may interfere with certain laboratory tests (e.g., urine screening for opiates), possibly causing false test results. Make sure laboratory personnel and all your doctors know you use this drug.

This document does not contain all possible interactions. Therefore, before using this product, tell your doctor or pharmacist of all the products you use. Keep a list of all your medications with you, and share the list with your doctor and pharmacist.