On May 1, 2006, Bristol-Meyers Squibb stopped manufacturing their antibiotic, Tequin also known as gatifloxacin. The drug manufacturer ceased production of the drug because of a high incidence of developing diabetes and other serious blood sugar complications. Initially, they simply increased the warnings related to the drug and added a black box warning, but as public fury and additional studies were published they decided to stop making the drug, citing financial reasons rather than side effects prompted their decision.
Tequin is an antibiotic medication that was prescribed initially to treat upper respiratory infections. Later, the drug was also prescribed for urinary tract infections and for the treatment of bacterial sexually transmitted diseases. Tequin is in the Quinolone or fluoroquinolone family which also contains drugs like Cipro, Tarivid and Avelox. These drugs are incredibly strong and potent and are now classified as a last line of defense after previous treatment options and other antibiotic use have been ruled out. Cipro is probably the most well known drug in this family being the primary drug used to treat Anthrax.
The Quinolone family of drugs, including Tequin, can cause several bad side effects including permanent nerve damage, tendon rupture, heart problems and Stevens Johnson syndrome. Low level side effects of Tequin include nausea, vaginitis, diarrhea, headache and dizziness. In some cases patients complained of allergic reactions to the drug, back and chest pain, chills, swelling of the face and fever.
Tequin was licensed for manufacture by Bristol-Meyers Squibb from a Japanese pharmaceutical company called Kyorin Pharmaceutical. It was introduced onto the market after FDA approval in 1999 and primarily prescribed for upper respiratory infections. In early 2006 it was well known that a study was coming out of Canada that documented the high incidences of diabetes among patients taking Tequin. Just prior to the publication of that study in the New England Journal of Medicine, Bristol-Meyers Squibb was prompted to communicate some of the finding to doctors prescribing Tequin and the FDA added a black box label to the medication. The study was published in March of 2006 and subsequently, Bristol-Meyers Squibb stopped manufacturing the drug altogether, although apparently not because of the dangerous side effects cited in the study.
The study, "Outpatient Gatifloxacin Therapy and Dysglycemia in Older Adults" cited that among their control groups taking Tequin, they found 788 patients treated for hypoglycemia within thirty days of antibiotic drug therapy. They also found 470 patients treated for hyperglycemia within 30 days of antibiotic drug therapy. Within those groups they found that patients taking Tequin were far more likely to develop diabetes or blood sugar complications than patients taking other antibiotics. In early May of 2006 the consumer group Public Citizen cited their own study which identified 388 cases of blood sugar related complications linked with Tequin and that 20 of those people died and 159 were hospitalized for serious treatment.
Diabetes naturally affects almost 20 million Americans. Essentially, diabetes prevents the body from producing the necessary amount of insulin for the body to function properly and the body cannot use the insulin that it does create properly. Although the causes for naturally occurring diabetes continue to elude researchers, it can be brought on by drugs including anti-psychotics and antibiotics like Tequin.
Although Bristol-Meyers Squibb has stopped manufacturing Tequin, citing financial reasons, the drug was neither banned nor was Tequin
officially recalled from the market for several months. This means that the existing supply of Tequin can still be prescribed and sold which continues to open thousands of people to this product defect and potential side effects. Public Citizen has petitioned the FDA for a ban of the drug but their calls have gone unanswered thus far.
If you have developed diabetes because of these bad Tequin side effects, you may have grounds to seek compensation for your injury. Contact a qualified personal injury attorney to find out if you should file a Tequin lawsuit.