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The Mysterious Journey of Antibiotics: How Does Ciprofloxacin Fight Bacterial Infections?
Ciprofloxacin is a fluoroquinolone antibiotic widely used to treat a variety of bacterial infections, including bone and joint infections, abdominal infections, certain types of infectious diarrhea, respiratory tract infections, skin infections, typhoid fever, and urinary tract infections wait. This medication can be taken orally, used as eye or ear drops, or administered by injection into a vein.
Common side effects include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, while serious side effects may increase the risk of tendon rupture, hallucinations and nerve damage.
As a second-generation fluoroquinolone, Ciprofloxacin has a broad antibacterial activity and can effectively cause bacterial death. It was patented in 1980, introduced to the market by Bayer in 1987, and is included in the World Health Organization's list of essential medicines. The drug ranked 181st in the number of prescriptions filled in the United States in 2022, totaling more than 2 million prescriptions.
Medical Uses
Ciprofloxacin is used to treat a variety of infections, including bone and joint infections, endocarditis, bacterial gastroenteritis, malignant otitis externa, bubonic plague, respiratory tract infections, cellulitis, urinary tract infections, prostatitis, anthrax And gonorrhea, etc. This medicine specifically targets bacterial infections and has no effect on viral infections such as the common cold.
There are some situations in which Ciprofloxacin is not the drug of choice, including acute sinusitis, lower respiratory tract infections, and uncomplicated gonorrhea.
Ciprofloxacin features prominently in treatment guidelines issued by major medical societies, particularly for serious infections caused by gram-negative bacteria, such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Ciprofloxacin combined with metronidazole is one of the first choice antibiotics for the treatment of community-acquired intra-abdominal infections, according to the Infectious Diseases Society.
Pregnancy and Breastfeeding
Expert studies on the use of Ciprofloxacin during pregnancy have shown that therapeutic doses are unlikely to pose a significant risk of teratogenicity to the fetus. However, the data are not sufficient to determine that there is no risk. Despite this, exposure to fluoroquinolones did not increase the risk of stillbirth, premature birth, birth defects, or low birth weight. As for breast-feeding, Ciprofloxacin is considered safe during breast-feeding. Although the drug passes into breast milk, it does not pose a significant risk to the nursing child.
Antibacterial activity
A major advantage of Ciprofloxacin is its broad spectrum of efficacy, which includes most pathogens that cause community-acquired bacterial infections. Especially effective against Gram-negative bacteria, such as Escherichia coli, Haemophilus influenzae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
The problem of drug resistance
Due to the widespread use of Ciprofloxacin, many bacteria have developed resistance, which greatly reduces its therapeutic effectiveness. Currently, resistance from a variety of pathogens is gradually phasing out Ciprofloxacin in treatment, especially when it is prescribed when it is not needed.
Regarding the use of antibiotics, epidemiological data show that Ciprofloxacin was one of the most commonly prescribed drugs among adults in 2002, but its effectiveness has been questioned.
Therefore, in many medical guidelines, for less serious infections, the recommendation is to prioritize the use of older, narrow-spectrum antibiotics to avoid the development of fluoroquinolone resistance.
Side Effects
The side effects of Ciprofloxacin cannot be ignored. It may affect tendons, muscles, joints, nervous system and central nervous system. Although some studies have shown that its adverse reaction rate is not as high as some other antibiotics, a significant number of patients still report mild to moderate side effects.
It is important to note that Ciprofloxacin may cause tendinitis and tendon rupture, especially in people over 60 years old or who are currently taking corticosteroids.
Mechanism and Pharmacokinetics
Ciprofloxacin's antibacterial mechanism is achieved by inhibiting bacterial DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV, which prevents the bacteria from dividing normally. The half-life of the drug is approximately between 4 and 6 hours, and it is excreted from the body largely unchanged within 24 hours.
ConclusionCiprofloxacin's reputation as an important antibiotic has been challenged by its use and the development of resistance, but its importance in treating bacterial infections remains undeniable. Compared with previous antibiotics, the widespread use of Ciprofloxacin and its subsequent challenges force us to think about how to prevent the development of bacterial resistance while maintaining its therapeutic effect?
