title: Subjective adverse reactions to metronidazole in patients with amebiasis.
abstract: Subjective adverse reactions to metronidazole were analyzed in 111 patients with amebiasis. Metronidazole was administered to 36 patients at a daily dose of 2250 mg and 75 patients at daily doses lower than 2250 mg. The reactions reported included nausea without vomiting in 11 (9.9%) patients, nausea with vomiting in 2 (1.8%), dysgeusia in 2 (1.8%), diarrhea in 1 (0.9%), headache in 1 (0.9%), numbness in 1 (0.9%), dizziness in 1 (0.9%), urticaria in 1 (0.9%), exanthema in 1 (0.9%), and discomfort in 1 (0.9%). Nausea was reported by 28% (10/36) of the patients receiving metronidazole at a daily dose of 2250 mg and 4% (3/75) of the patients receiving lower daily doses. The duration of the metronidazole administration in days was not associated with the appearance of nausea. No life-threatening adverse reactions were identified, and good clinical therapeutic effects were observed in 96% (107/111) of the patients. While metronidazole appears to be a safe anti-protozoal agent for patients with amebiasis, our results indicate that a daily metronidazole dose of 2250 mg is excessive for amebiasis, as it often induces nausea.
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo Metropolitan Bokutoh General Hospital, Tokyo 130-8575, Japan. Electronic address: infection@bokutoh-hp.metro.tokyo.jp.
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ohnishi
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo Metropolitan Bokutoh General Hospital, Tokyo 130-8575, Japan.
authors.forename: Naoya
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sakamoto
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo Metropolitan Bokutoh General Hospital, Tokyo 130-8575, Japan.
authors.forename: Ken-Ichiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo Metropolitan Bokutoh General Hospital, Tokyo 130-8575, Japan.
authors.forename: Sentaro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Iwabuchi
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo Metropolitan Bokutoh General Hospital, Tokyo 130-8575, Japan; Department of Pathogen, Infection and Immunity, Nara Medical University, Nara 634-8521, Japan.
authors.forename: Fukumi
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Nakamura-Uchiyama
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo Metropolitan Cancer and Infectious Diseases Center Komagome Hospital, Tokyo 113-8677, Japan.
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ajisawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Disease Control and Prevention Center, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yamauchi
authors.affiliation: Department of Disease Control and Prevention Center, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan.
authors.forename: Nozomi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Takeshita
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine and Molecular Genetics of Coagulation Disorders, Tokyo Medical University Hospital, Tokyo 162-0023, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasuyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo Health Medical Treatments Corporation Ebara Hospital, Tokyo 145-0065, Japan.
authors.forename: Takafumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tsunoda
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Yokohama Municipal Citizen's Hospital, Yokohama 240-8555, Japan.
authors.forename: Yukihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yoshimura
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Yokohama Municipal Citizen's Hospital, Yokohama 240-8555, Japan.
authors.forename: Natsuo
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Tachikawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, National Hospital Organization Osaka National Hospital, Osaka 540-0006, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomoko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Uehira
mesh_terms: D000562:Amebiasis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D000981:Antiprotozoal Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008795:Metronidazole / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D000981:Antiprotozoal Agents; D008795:Metronidazole
keywords: Adverse reaction; Amebiasis; Metronidazole; Nausea