Levomycetin for cystitis in women and men

Inflammation of the bladder is an extremely unpleasant problem that most women face. Less commonly, the disease affects men. When there are difficulties with urination, cutting pains above the pubis, general malaise, then a person grabs every opportunity to alleviate his condition, even agreeing to antibiotic therapy. Doctors often prescribe Levomycetin for cystitis: it is a drug with an extensive spectrum of activity, which is used in therapeutic regimens for many pathologies caused by pathogenic bacteria entering the tissues. The use of Levomycetin is also appropriate for inflammation of the bladder.

Is it possible to drink Levomycetin with cystitis?

The most common cause of the inflammatory process in the bladder is the penetration of pathogenic microbes into the urination system. Bacteria quickly take root on the mucous tissues of the organ and develop safely, stimulating the onset of the inflammatory response. To influence the infectious agent and stop its growth and development, the doctor prescribes medications with broad antibacterial activity.

Levomycetin for cystitis is included in the general treatment regimen in combination with other drugs - for example, with analgesics, uroseptics, anti-inflammatory drugs. The therapy is supplemented by such important measures as abundant fluid intake, a change in dietary rules with the exclusion of products that irritate the mucous tissues of the bladder.

Does Levomycetin help with cystitis?

Levomycetin is a fairly powerful antibacterial drug, but it must be taken correctly, strictly following the treatment regimen prescribed by the doctor. The main mistake most often made by patients is self-treatment. Often, a doctor is consulted already in advanced cases of cystitis, when a person tried to be treated himself and as a result only harmed himself. Doctors note that most patients interrupt the course of therapy in advance, explaining this by the subsidence of the main symptoms of inflammation. It is absolutely impossible to do this: contrary to the opinion of many, cystitis is not treated in 1-2 days. With a short intake of antibiotics, we can only “drive” the disease into hibernation. And after a while, she will wake up and remind herself of herself with even more pronounced symptoms.

In what cases does Levomycetin really help with cystitis? When contacting a doctor, the patient gives a general urine test with culture. This is necessary in order to understand which pathogen led to the development of an inflammatory reaction, as well as to assess its sensitivity to antibiotic therapy. If the action spectrum of Levomycetin captures the detected pathogenic bacterium, then this drug is prescribed in an individually selected dosage. During the entire treatment, a urine test is repeated, monitoring the indicators and dynamics of treatment.

Indications Chloramphenicol for cystitis

In addition to cystitis, Levomycetin is successfully used to treat other infectious and inflammatory pathologies caused by bacteria sensitive to the action of this antibiotic. Most often, such pathologies include paratyphoid, typhoid fever, yersiniosis, brucellosis, shigellosis, chlamydia, salmonellosis, purulent form of peritonitis, tularemia, rickettsiosis, microbial meningitis, infectious lesions of the biliary system.

Levomycetin is also prescribed in cases where other antibacterial agents are ineffective, or their treatment is accompanied by significant and undesirable side effects.

Levomycetin for cystitis in women

Women resort to the help of Levomycetin most often. And this is not surprising, because cystitis develops mainly in women, and for men such a disease is rare.

But it should be remembered: before prescribing a drug to a woman, the doctor will always ask if she is pregnant. The fact is that every patient should be aware that the antibiotic through the vascular network overcomes the placental barrier and gets to the developing fetus. The medication can cause particular damage to the children's brain, which is too sensitive to Levomycetin. As a result, the child may suffer: after birth, the violations will manifest themselves as severe mental failures. In order to prevent unpleasant consequences, every woman, being of childbearing age, must make sure that she is not pregnant before taking Levomycetin for cystitis.

Levomycetin for cystitis in men

The incidence of cystitis in men is several times lower than in women. Statistics indicate that inflammation of the bladder is found in only half a percent of the entire male population. This figure is justified: the fact is that the long, narrow and curved urinary canal prevents infection from entering the bladder cavity.

However, infection is still possible - for example, with other urological problems, bladder stones, with its neurogenic dysfunction, as well as against the background of prostatitis or epididymitis.

Levomycetin for cystitis is prescribed simultaneously with an increase in the amount of fluid consumed, with the complete exclusion of alcoholic beverages, with a strict diet and sexual abstinence.

Release form

The antibiotic from cystitis Levomycetin is a white or slightly yellowish tablet, cylindrically flattened. In the middle of each tablet there is a dividing line, and the end edge is slightly beveled. Sometimes in the structure of the drug you can find small blotches of a grayish or yellowish hue.

The active ingredient of Levomycetin is represented by chloramphenicol. Among the auxiliary components are starch, stearic acid, hydroxypropyl cellulose.

One tablet may contain 250-500 mg of the active ingredient.

One plate contains ten tablets, and one carton contains two plates.

Levomycetin belongs to the group of antibiotics intended for systemic use.

Pharmacodynamics

Levomycetin, used for cystitis, belongs to the category of bacteriostatic antibiotics with a wide spectrum of activity. The effectiveness of the drug is due to a violation of the reaction of protein synthesis in a bacterial cell at the stage of transfer of amino acids to ribosomes.

Levomycetin acts on many Gram-positive and Gram-negative microorganisms, including Escherichia coli, Shigella, Salmonella, Streptococcus, Neischeria, Proteus, Pseudomonas, Rickettsia, Chlamydia, Treponema, etc. It does not have a detrimental effect on tuberculosis mycobacteria, pathogenic protozoa and fungal infection.

Levomycetin is active against microbial strains resistant to drugs of the penicillin, tetracycline, sulfanilamide series. There is a low activity of the drug with respect to acid-resistant microorganisms, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, clostridia and protozoa.

Levomycetin in cystitis inhibits protein synthesis in bacterial cells. In therapeutic dosages, the drug has a bacteriostatic property. Bacteria acquire resistance gradually, without the formation of cross-resistance to other antibiotics.

The drug has increased toxicity, so it is prescribed only when less toxic drugs do not have the desired effect, or cannot be prescribed for other reasons. [1]

Pharmacokinetics

Levomycetin is absorbed through the walls of the digestive tract almost in full. The maximum content in the blood serum is detected after about 2.5 hours. Therapeutic concentrations are fixed within 4.5 hours.

Bioavailability after internal administration is about 80%. The active ingredient has excellent penetration into organs, tissues and fluids in the body, easily penetrates the blood-brain barrier, placental barrier, and is also found in mother's milk.

Communication with plasma proteins occurs on average by 55%. Large concentrations are found in the kidneys and liver, and up to 30% of the dose of Levomycetin used is present in the bile secretion.

The active ingredient easily crosses the blood-brain barrier, with a maximum concentration in the cerebrospinal fluid 4 hours after a single tablet intake.

Biotransformation occurs in the liver. The active ingredient undergoes hydrolysis to a free state in the digestive tract even before absorption.

Excretion of the drug from the body is carried out mainly with the urinary fluid. The half-life with normal functioning of the liver and kidneys can be from one and a half to three and a half hours.

Dosing and administration

Adult patients usually take Levomycetin for cystitis half an hour before meals. If such a regimen causes nausea and vomiting in a person, then the drug is shifted, taking one hour after a meal.

Dosage and duration of treatment are set individually for each patient.

As a standard for adults, it is recommended to drink 0.5 g of Levomycetin three times a day, with a maximum allowable dosage of 2 g.

For children, a dose is selected from 125 to 250 mg, three times a day.

The duration of antibiotic therapy cannot be less than one week. Even if the symptoms of cystitis have practically disappeared, the course of treatment should still be completed.

You can not independently adjust the appointment of a doctor, reducing or increasing the amount of the drug. If the doctor deems it necessary, he can extend the treatment up to 10-14 days.

Application for children

If the child cries during urination, shows obvious anxiety, refuses to eat, if the smell of urine changes, or there are other suspicious symptoms, then it is imperative to consult a pediatrician: the baby may have developed cystitis. It is necessary to act here as quickly as possible, since inflammation from the bladder can easily be complicated by pyelonephritis.

An older child, unlike small children, is already able to complain of pain in the lower abdomen, painful urination, or frequent unproductive urges.

When contacting a doctor, a diagnosis will be assigned. Detected cystitis will be treated with antibiotics, and the course of treatment will be at least one week. It is likely that Levomycetin will be the drug of choice. The drug is used to treat children from the age of three. However, these tablets are prescribed very carefully, and only if no other, less toxic drugs can be prescribed.

Use Chloramphenicol for cystitis during pregnancy

Levomycetin for cystitis is never prescribed to a pregnant or lactating woman. Even more so: if the patient is of childbearing age, then before starting treatment, she should make sure that she is not pregnant. Breastfeeding mothers should stop or temporarily stop breastfeeding.

The ability of Levomycetin to easily overcome the placental barrier has been proven. In this case, the drug penetrates directly to the embryo, which in the future may result in unpleasant consequences for the baby. Levomycetin refers to toxic antibiotics, it can cause irreversible changes in the brain of a child.

Without problems, the drug passes into breast milk. A nursing woman who is forced to take Levomycetin for cystitis is recommended to express herself throughout the entire period of antibiotic therapy, as well as several days after its completion. The expressed milk is poured out, and the child is fed with a pre-prepared frozen product, or transferred to a mixture. Some mothers decide to stop breastfeeding.

Contraindications

• Levomycetin with cystitis is not used to treat pregnant and lactating patients. Taking this antibiotic can only be recommended for vital indications, when less toxic medications cannot be prescribed.
• In pediatric practice, they try to limit the use of Levomycetin for cystitis - again, due to the high toxicity of the drug. If necessary, the dosage is calculated especially carefully, taking into account not only the age and weight of the patient, but also the characteristics of the course of the disease.
• Levomycetin is not used if the patient has signs of insufficient liver and / or kidney function, or there are serious cardiovascular pathologies.
• Levomycetin is not suitable if the patient suffers from psoriasis, eczema, fungal and immune diseases.
• Do not use the drug to treat people who are sensitive to its reception, as well as those who have undergone radiation treatment.

Levomycetin is never prescribed for the prevention of cystitis, but only for its treatment if indicated.

Side effects Chloramphenicol for cystitis

The higher the dosage and the longer the course of taking Levomycetin for cystitis, the greater the likelihood of developing side effects. In the most severe cases, normocytic anemia develops, inhibition of bone marrow function.

The most commonly reported side effects are:

• psychomotor disorders, depressive states, headaches;
• disorders of taste sensations, deterioration of auditory and visual function, auditory and visual hallucinations;
• dyspepsia, flatulence, nausea, diarrhea, imbalance of microflora, enterocolitis, stomatitis;
• deterioration of the liver;
• a drop in the amount of hemoglobin in the blood, anemia, agranulocytosis, leukopenia;
• allergic processes, fever, skin rash, itching;
• the development of superinfection - both bacterial and fungal.

If such symptoms appear, you should stop taking Levomycetin and seek advice from your doctor.

Overdose

Signs of an overdose most often begin to appear with self-administration of Levomycetin for cystitis - that is, without a doctor's prescription. This means that the dose, duration and frequency of administration are chosen incorrectly. A standard medical course of an antibiotic prescribed according to age cannot cause an overdose.

With excessive intake of Levomycetin in the body, the following symptoms are usually noted:

• in adults - pallor of the skin, sore throat, fever, bleeding and bruising, a feeling of fatigue and weakness;
• in children - dullness of the skin, a decrease in body temperature, respiratory arrhythmia, inhibition of nervous reactions, lack of cardiovascular activity, acidosis, deterioration in myocardial conduction.

At the first signs of an overdose, the antibiotic is canceled, and symptomatic treatment is prescribed instead. Gastric lavage is done beforehand, after which the patient is given a saline laxative, activated charcoal. If necessary, the intestines are also washed.

With the development of complications, symptomatic therapy is supplemented by hemosorption.

Interactions with other drugs

Levomycetin is a toxic and powerful antibiotic, although inexpensive. Therefore, it must be taken with caution - and especially in cases where you have to be treated with several medications at the same time. Here is what you need to know in order to reduce the toxic effect of medicines on the body, and not cause even more harm to it:

• Levomycetin weakens the effect of oral contraceptives based on the action of estrogens.
• The antibiotic is incompatible with any alcoholic beverages, since this combination causes a disulfiram-like reaction (skin redness, convulsions, nausea, vomiting, cough, increased heart rate).
• Levomycetin does not combine well with Phenobarbital, Phenytoin, indirect coagulants.
• Simultaneous administration enhances the effect of oral hypoglycemic agents.
• The combination with Paracetamol leads to a prolongation of the half-life of Levomycetin.
• The combination with Cyclosporine or Tacrolimus causes an increase in the level of these drugs in the blood plasma.
• Levomycetin lowers the antibacterial properties of penicillin and cephalosporin antibiotics.
• Mutual weakening of efficiency occurs when Levomycetin is combined with macrolide and polyene antibiotics.
• Cycloserine makes the antibiotic even more neurotoxic.
• Inhibition of bone marrow function occurs when combined with sulfonamides, cytostatics, Ristomycin, Cimetidine.
• In the course of antibiotic therapy, the effectiveness of iron, vitamin B ₁₂  and folic acid preparations taken simultaneously decreases.

Storage conditions

Most antibiotics are advised to store at an average room temperature - that is, from +15 to +24 ° C. Storage in the refrigerator is allowed, but it is absolutely impossible to freeze the tablets.

It is optimal to store Levomycetin at room temperature in a dark place that is not exposed to heat from direct ultraviolet rays or from heating devices.

In the summer, heat becomes an unfavorable factor for medicines, under the influence of which medicines can change their properties. If the room temperature begins to exceed + 25 ° C, then it is recommended to send the antibiotic to the refrigerator - for example, on the door shelf.

Other recommendations include:

• tablets should be protected from moisture;
• tablets removed from the contour plate should not be stored, as under the influence of air their structure may be disturbed;
• antibiotics should not be stored in plain sight, as children can take advantage of such carelessness;
• if the shelf life of the tablets has expired, they should be disposed of.

Shelf life

Levomycetin tablets, which are prescribed for cystitis, are allowed to be stored under appropriate conditions for up to five years. But, since the drug is produced by many pharmaceutical companies, the shelf life may vary, therefore, before using the product, it is better to clarify this point on the package or in the instructions for a particular medication.

Analogues: how can Levomycetin be replaced with cystitis?

If the doctor has prescribed Levomycetin for cystitis, then it is necessary to clarify in which dosage form the drug should be bought. In the vast majority of cases, tablets are meant. However, you need to know that this antibiotic is also available in powder for the preparation of an injection solution, 0.5-1 g per vial.

Levomycetin has no complete analogues, except that some companies produce a medication whose name corresponds to the active ingredient of this antibiotic - Chloramphenicol. Such a drug is produced in the form of a powdered substance and is produced by pharmaceutical companies in China.

In general, instead of Levomycetin, doctors often prescribe other effective antimicrobial medicines, for example:

• Monural is a drug of fosfomycin, which has an excellent antibacterial effect in the field of the urinary system. Monural is produced in granulated, powdered form, as well as in the form of a suspension.
• Nolicin is an antibiotic of a number of fluoroquinolones, available in tablet form. As a rule, the drug is prescribed if the pathogen shows resistance to other antimicrobial agents.
• Nitroxoline is a drug based on oxyquinoline, which has a wide antibacterial and antifungal effect. It is actively used in urology.
• Palin is a quinolone antibiotic approved for use in acute or chronic cystitis.
• Nevigramone is a popular uroantiseptic, the action of which is due to the presence of nalidixic acid. The drug has a bactericidal property, which allows the use of the drug for infectious and inflammatory lesions of the bladder, kidneys and ureter.
• Rulid is a macrolide antibiotic with a broad spectrum of activity.

In addition to the above medications, nitrofuran preparations are often prescribed for cystitis, which are known for their excellent bactericidal properties against the background of slowly developing bacterial resistance. Among such common tablets are Furazolidone, Furagin, Furadonin.

Reviews

Despite the pronounced toxic effect, Levomycetin with cystitis has proven itself only on the good side: it quickly helps, easily removes painful symptoms, therefore it has a lot of positive feedback from patients and medical workers. The main condition for such a positive effect of the drug is literacy in the appointment and dosage, compliance with all the prescriptions of a specialist. Attempts to use an antibiotic on their own often lead to the development of all sorts of adverse effects.

Before proceeding with the treatment of cystitis with Levomycetin, the following important points must be considered:

• Since the drug is toxic, its long-term use should be combined with periodic monitoring of the composition of peripheral blood, kidney and liver function.
• Levomycetin is urgently canceled if leukopenia, anemia, thrombocytopenia are noted among the blood counts.
• Treatment with any antibiotics (Levomycetin is no exception) causes a breakdown in the maintenance of normal microflora in the large intestine. The growth and reproduction of Clostridium difficile can be stimulated, the toxins of which, in turn, can give impetus to the development of pseudomembranous colitis. In addition, during antibiotic therapy, the risk of fungal infection is significantly increased.
• Levomycetin can cause an allergic reaction - up to anaphylaxis. Before taking the tablets for the first time, it is important to test for the possibility of an allergy.
• Antibiotics should not be taken uncontrollably, chaotically, and also as a prophylactic.
• The course of the drug Levomycetin with cystitis can not be repeated one after another. If the disease has resumed, then you need to consult a doctor to select another drug with a different active ingredient and mechanism of action.