KETEK (Telithromycin)
On January 20, 2006, Annals of Internal Medicine reported three cases of severe liver problems, including one death, in patients at a North Carolina hospital after they began taking the antibiotic Ketek (Generic: Telithromycin). Federal regulators said they are examining an unknown number of U.S. cases involving Ketek and are consulting with overseas counterparts.
Ketek, manufactured by Sanofi-Aventis, was approved in 2004 for the treatment of acute bacterial infections from chronic bronchitis, acute bacterial sinusitis and community-acquired pneumonia. A spokeswoman from the FDA said the agency would examine its databases for other reports of liver problems in patients taking Ketek.
Dr. John Hanson, who works in the liver transplant center at Carolinas Medical Center, said that the severity of the cases warranted alerting doctors to a possible link between liver damage and Ketek. One patient at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, N.C., died after taking Ketek. Another patient received a liver transplant, and the third contracted drug-induced hepatitis but recovered after treatment with Ketek was stopped.
If you are currently taking Ketek, and are not suffering side effects such as those described should continue taking your medicine, unless otherwise directed by your health care provider.
Some side-effects are:
- yellowing eyes or skin
- loss of appetite
- dark urine
- pale stools
- itching
- abdominal pain
Legal help for Ketek users:
If you believe you or a loved one may have developed liver problems as a result of taking Ketek, contact Balkin & Eisbrouch, LLC for a free consultation. Call 1-800- RESULTS or Email us for more information .
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