"Chloramphenicol" is considered a drug with antimicrobial activity. Tablets are used to treat various infectious diseases that are provoked by pathogenic microorganisms sensitive to this antibiotic.
The tablets are small in size, rounded in shape and yellow in color. The main component of the drug is chloramphenicol. Its concentration in the medication is 0.25 and 0.5 grams. In addition, the composition of the drug includes additional substances, which include:
- calcium stearic acid;
- stearic acid;
- potato starch.
Tablets are packaged in blisters of 10 pieces.
Eye drops are a medicine for external use. They are used in ophthalmic practice to eliminate infectious lesions of the eyes and their appendages, provoked by pathogens sensitive to Levomycetin.
Eye drops are a colorless liquid. The main component is chloramphenicol. The solution is contained in a dropper bottle with a volume of 5 or 10 milliliters. In addition, the drug is made in the form of ointments and powder for infusion.
Pharmacological properties
The main component of "Levomycetin" chloramphenicol is an antibiotic. It can inhibit the growth and spread of sensitive microorganisms by inhibiting the synthesis of certain proteins inside their cells. The drug has the greatest activity against several groups of bacteria:
- Staphylococci.
- Streptococcus
- Neisseria.
- E. coli.
- Salmonella.
- Shigella.
- Klebsiella.
- Yersinia.
- Proteus.
In addition, the active component of the drug "Levomycetin" inhibits growth and reproduction:
- Ricketsy.
- Spirochete.
- Some large viruses.
Chloramphenicol has sufficient activity against pathogens that are resistant to streptomycin, as well as semisynthetic penicillins and sulfonamides.
With external use of ointment "Levomycetin" in ophthalmology, the pharmacological accumulation of the drug predominates:
- in the iris;
- vitreous body;
- cornea;
- watery moisture.
Indications
"Levomycetin" tablets are prescribed for infectious diseases that are provoked by microorganisms sensitive to the active component. These diseases include:
- Typhoid fever (acute intestinal infection, which differs in a cyclic course with damage to the lymphatic system of the intestine).
- Paratyphoid fever (acute infectious pathological processes that are provoked by paratyphoid salmonella and occur with the appearance of intoxication symptoms, rashes and damage to the intestinal lymphoid apparatus).
- Dysentery (an infectious lesion that is characterized by general infectious intoxication and a syndrome of damage to the stomach and intestines).
- Tularemia (an acute infectious disease that encompasses the lymph nodes, as well as the skin, sometimes the mucous membranes of the eyes, pharynx, and lungs).
- Brucellosis (zoonotic infectious disease that is transmitted from sick animals to humans and is characterized by damage to organs and systems of the human body).
- Meningitis (an inflammatory lesion of the membranes of the brain that occurs subsequently in a bacterial, as well as a viral or fungal infection).
In addition, Levomycetin tablets can be used for other infectious diseases that are triggered by microorganisms sensitive to chloramphenicol.
The use of eye drops is indicated for infectious processes of various eye structures provoked by pathogens sensitive to chloramphenicol. Infectious and pathological eye lesions include:
- Conjunctivitis (an inflammatory lesion that develops on the mucous membrane of the organs of vision).
- Keratitis (inflammation of the cornea of the eye, which is characterized by its clouding, as well as ulceration, pain and redness of the eye).
- Blepharitis (bilateral inflammatory lesion of the ciliary edge of the eyelids).
In addition, the drug is used to prevent certain infectious lesions of the eye structures.
Contraindications
Reception of "Levomycetin" is prohibited in certain pathological and physiological conditions of the body, which include:
- Individual intolerance.
- Pathological processes that are accompanied by impaired blood formation in the red bone marrow.
- Psoriasis (a chronic non-infectious disease that affects mainly the skin).
- Fungal diseases of the skin.
- Eczema (acute or chronic inflammatory lesion of the skin, which is characterized by a variety of rashes, burning sensations, itching and a tendency to relapse).
- Pregnancy at any time during its course.
- Children under the age of one month provided external use of the drug.
Before treatment with Levomycetin tablets, you need to make sure that there are no restrictions.
How to use pills and drops
"Chloramphenicol" is used orally, regardless of food intake. Tablets should be washed down with water. The dosage of the drug is individual, it depends on the type of pathology. The average recommended dosages for patients of different ages are as follows:
- Kids under 3 years old - 15 milligrams of the drug per 1 kilogram of weight.
- Children from 3 to 8 years old - 150-200 mg three times a day.
- Small patients aged 8 years and over - 400 milligrams four times a day.
- Adults - 500 mg four times a day.
If necessary, depending on the source of the infectious lesion and the severity of its course, the doctor can adjust the dosage. The average duration of treatment with Levomycetin can vary from 7 to 10 days, if necessary, it can be prolonged.
According to the instructions for "Levomycetin" for the eyes, instill the medicine into the conjunctiva 1 drop three times a day. Do not use the drug for longer than three days without consulting a medical specialist.
Before applying the drops, hand disinfection is performed. Treatment with the drug can only begin after the permission of the pediatrician.
According to the instructions for drops of "Levomycetin", children are also prescribed 1 drop in each eye three times a day. The therapeutic effect occurs after about two hours.
How to use Levomycetinum in the form of injections
Children are given the drug intramuscularly. Up to one year, twenty-five to thirty milligrams per kilogram of body weight. Children from one year old need to inject the drug intramuscularly at 50 mg per 1 kg of weight. This dosage is divided into two doses. The medicine should be administered with a time interval of twelve hours.
For adult patients, the medication is administered intravenously or intramuscularly. For intramuscular injections of "Levomycetin" from 0.5 to 1 gram is diluted in two to three milliliters of water, then filled into a syringe and injected deep into the muscle.
For intravenous use, a single dose is diluted in ten milliliters of water for injection, you need to enter "Levomycetin" slowly for five minutes.
In case of eye diseases, the drug is used for injection and for drip use, and it is also possible to apply chloramphenicol ointment. During the injection, 0.5 or 0.3 milliliters of a twenty percent solution is administered twice a day.
Tablets and eye drops "Levomycetin": side effects
Tablets and solution can provoke the following negative effects from different organs and systems:
- Nausea.
- Periodic vomiting.
- Flatulence (a common disease, the essence of which is an increased accumulation of gases in the organs of the gastrointestinal tract).
- Diarrhea.
- Optic neuritis (damage to the optic nerve of inflammatory origin).
- Inflammation of the peripheral nerves.
- Migraine (headache, signs of which are considered regular attacks of medium and high intensity).
- Insomnia.
- Confusion.
- Visual and auditory hallucinations.
- Delirium (a mental disorder that occurs with stupefaction, as well as a violation of attention, thinking and emotions).
- Leukopenia (a decrease in the number of white blood cells in the blood).
- Thrombopenia (a decrease in red blood platelets in the circulating blood).
- Aplastic anemia (damage to the hematopoietic system, which is characterized by a suppression of the hematopoietic function of the bone marrow and is manifested by a small formation of red blood cells, as well as white blood cells and platelets).
What other side effects does Chloramphenicol cause? Eye drops and tablets can provoke the appearance of the following conditions:
- Rashes and itching of the skin.
- Urticaria (skin lesion of allergic etiology, which is characterized by the rapid development of severely itchy blisters).
- Quincke's angioedema.
- Reticulocytopenia (a disease in which the number of immature red blood cells increases in the blood).
- Erythropenia (decrease in the number of red blood cells in the blood).
- Agranulocytosis (a clinical and hematological disease, which is based on a sharp decrease or absence of neutrophilic granulocytes among the cellular elements of the blood).
- The Yarish-Herxheimer reaction (a reaction that appears several hours after the start of therapy with specific antimicrobial agents for patients with spirochetosis, as well as syphilis, borreliosis, meningococcal meningitis).
In addition, there are also the following side effects from Levomycetin (eye drops and tablets):
- Cardiovascular collapse (heart failure, which occurs due to a sharp decrease in capillary tone).
- Encephalopathy (brain damage in various diseases and a violation of its functions that are not associated with inflammatory processes).
- Glossitis (a pathological inflammatory lesion of the tissues of the tongue, which is considered a sign of general diseases of the body, but in rare situations acts as an independent disease).
- Stomatitis (a dental disease that manifests itself in the form of catarrhal, aphthous, ulcerative, necrotic lesions of the oral mucosa).
- Enterocolitis (acute and chronic lesions of the digestive system, which are characterized by inflammation of the intestinal mucosa).
The occurrence of side effects from "Levomycetin" (tablets and drops) is considered the basis for dose adjustment or even cancellation.
Features
Before treatment with pills, it is necessary to become familiar with the annotation to the drug. There are several recommendations:
- The use of the medication for newborns is excluded, which is associated with an increased risk of severe bloating, as well as diarrhea, bluish staining of the skin, cardiovascular failure.
- With extreme caution, “Levomycetin” is used in patients who in the recent past or at the time of the use of the medication underwent radiation treatment or cytostatic therapy.
- Combining alcohol and the drug is prohibited, since it is likely that severe nausea, vomiting, redness of the skin, stenosis, and reflex cough are likely.
- With prolonged use of the drug "Levomycetin" you need to carry out regular monitoring of peripheral blood.
- With special care, the medication is used for concomitant pathological lesions of the liver, which are accompanied by a decrease in its functional activity.
- The drug does not directly affect the functional state of the cerebral cortex, but in connection with the likely occurrence of adverse reactions from the nervous system, it is necessary to abandon activities that are associated with the need for concentration.
Pills in drugstores are available only by prescription from a medical specialist. You can not use them yourself on the recommendations of third parties.
Exceeding the recommended pharmacological dosage is accompanied by the manifestation of the following side effects from Levomycetin tablets: nausea and vomiting. In this situation, the medication is stopped, gastric and intestinal lavage is carried out, enterosorbents are used, as well as symptomatic treatment.
Analogs
Similar in pharmacological action to "Chloramphenicol" are:
- Monural.
- Amoxiclav.
- "Cefuroxime".
- Gentamicin.
- Roxithromycin.
- "Nolicin."
Storage and price of the drug "Levomycetin"
The shelf life of the tablets is 60 months. They must be kept in a dark, dry place inaccessible to children at an air temperature of no higher than 25 degrees.
Shelf life of eye drops is 24 months. After opening the bottle, the drug can be used for 30 days. Keep the medication away from children, at an air temperature of no more than 30 degrees.
The cost of the drug varies from 10 to 130 rubles.
Opinions
Reviews about the tablets "Levomycetin" are usually positive. The drug can be used in many situations, so it is recommended by medical specialists. People especially like the fact that the drug acts quickly and is inexpensive. There are almost no reports of negative reactions. So in general, the responses about the drug characterize it as an effective and economical remedy for various diseases.
No less positive reviews about eye drops of Chloramphenicol. Side effects after their use are very rare. Despite its low price, the drug gives an instant effect and in the vast majority of cases provides a one hundred percent result.