Requires Prescription (YES/NO)
No
Generics
Metronidazole , Di-Iodohydroxyquinoline
How it works
It is an antibiotic and antiprotozoal medication. It is used either alone or with other antibiotics to treat pelvic inflammatory disease, endocarditis, and bacterial vaginosis. It is effective for dracunculiasis, giardiasis, trichomoniasis, and amebiasis.
Usage And Safety
Dosage
Children: (under 4yrs) 5ml thrice daily; (4-12yrs) 10ml thrice daily or as directed by your physician.
Side Effects
Nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, anorexia, metallic taste, headache, dizziness and occasionally insomnia and drowsiness.
Drug Interactions
• Alcohol: Patients should be advised not to take alcohol during metronidazole therapy and for at least 48 hours after because of the possibility of a disulfiram-like (antabuse effect) reaction.• Disulfiram: Psychotic reactions have been reported in patients who were using metronidazole and disulfiram concurrently.• Anticoagulants: Some potentiation of anticoagulant therapy has been reported when metronidazole has been used with the warfarin type oral anticoagulants. Dosage of the latter may require reducing. Prothrombin times should be monitored. There is no interaction with heparin.• Lithium: Lithium retention accompanied by evidence of possible renal damage has been reported in patients treated simultaneously with lithium and metronidazole. Lithium treatment should be tapered or withdrawn before administering metronidazole. Plasma concentration of lithium, creatinine, and electrolytes should be monitored in patients under treatment with lithium while they receive metronidazole.• Antiepileptics: Patients receiving phenobarbital or phenytoin metabolise metronidazole at a much greater rate than normally, reducing the half-life to approximately 3 hours. Primidone accelerates the metabolism of Metronidazole causing reduced plasma concentrations.• Cytotoxics: Metronidazole reduces the clearance of 5-fluorouraciland can therefore result in increased toxicity of 5-fluorouracil.• Immunosuppressants: Patients receiving ciclosporin are at risk of elevated ciclosporin serum levels. Serum ciclosporin and serum creatinine should be closely monitored when coadministration is necessary.• Plasma levels of busulfan may be increased by metronidazole which may lead to severe busulfan toxicity.
Indication
Acute amoebiasis, Chronic amoebiasis, Hepatic amoebiasis and other systemic diseases due to E. histolytica, Giardiasis.
When not to Use
Hepatic impairment, haemodialysis, CNS disease, cocaine syndrome.
