FDA cautions against antibiotics for heart patients
By Rachael
Rettner, MyHealthNewsDaily
An antibiotic
commonly prescribed for bronchitis and sinus infections may increase the risk
of death from heart problems, but only for people with certain risk factors, a
new study suggests.
The study
involved more than a million cases of antibiotic treatment for young and
middle-age adults living in Denmark.
Use of the
antibiotic azithromycin was linked with nearly a threefold increase in the
risk of dying from heart problems over the five-day treatment, compared with not taking
antibiotics. (Azithromycin is sold under the brand name Zithromax, and a
treatment course is commonly referred to as a "Z
pack.")
However, the study found a
similar increased risk of dying for people treated with the antibiotic
penicillin.
This suggests that there's something about people who are prescribed
antibiotics — for instance, they may have health risks due to their bacterial
infection — rather than the drugs themselves, that increases the risk of death
from heart problems, the researchers said.
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