Zithromax SJS Rare Skin Reaction

July 23, 2013, 8:00AM. By Gordon Gibb

Toronto, ONA diagnosis of Zithromax Stevens Johnson Syndrome is one in a million. But for the one, it’s like dying a million deaths in an effort to survive. You feel like you have a million blisters inside and outside your body. And it may be true that the only way for Americans to avoid side effects and adverse reactions from drugs is to not take them at all. But as long as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) holds the view that a drug is not unsafe if the benefits outweigh the risks and consumers are informed, then adverse reactions such as Zithromax side effects are perfectly acceptable.

But tell that to any patient who has been made to endure the ravages of Zithromax Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS), a rare but incredibly painful and dangerous condition that has the potential for keeping a patient in the hospital for months, robbing a patient of her eyesight and ultimately threatening her life.

Many patients having survived SJS after taking Zithromax (azithromycin), or Zmax as it is sometimes called, have filed a Zithromax lawsuit seeking compensation. This is especially the case after the FDA took Pfizer to task just over a year ago for minimizing the potential risks for SJS on product advertising. While the Zithromax manufacturer duly included the rare potential for Stevens Johnson Syndrome and other serious adverse reactions on product labeling, the June 19, 2012 communique to Pfizer by the FDA noted that brochures advertising Zithromax, Zmax and Z-Pak downplayed the risk, together with failure to note that such reactions can recur in patients after azithromycin is discontinued.

To be fair, Zithromax is not the only medication with the potential to trigger SJS in patients by way of a rare allergic reaction that often starts with a seemingly innocent Zithromax rash. Other prescription drugs and even over-the-counter medications such as ibuprofen have the potential to foster allergic reactions that can lead to Stevens Johnson Syndrome.

And some SJS patients never know. Sonia Whyte-Croasdaile of Toronto was devastated with a severe case of Stevens Johnson Syndrome two years ago. Cosmetically, according to a CITY TV Toronto report by Inside Story journalist Avery Haines (6/25/13), she has recovered but continues to have lingering health issues. Teen Karyl Bell, an American, is also at a loss as to what triggered her SJS. But she knows it didn’t involve Zithromax reactions because, according to a report from WNYT News Channel 13 (8/24/10), she hadn’t taken any medication whatsoever prior to becoming ravaged with SJS. Her mother speculates the culprit may have been chemicals used at her daughter’s school to eradicate a mold problem.

But other patients allegedly can trace their Zithromax skin rash to their use of Zithromax, and have litigated in kind. According to the warning label for Zmax, “Serious allergic reactions, including angioedema, anaphylaxis, Stevens Johnson Syndrome and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis have been reported rarely in patients on azithromycin therapy using other formulations. Although rare, fatalities have been reported.”

It has been reported, however, that promotional materials for Zithromax, Zmax and Z-Pak skirted around the potential severity of Zithromax Stevens Johnson Syndrome. Pfizer, it has been reported, was made to correct the oversight. So long as the manufacturer duly articulates the risks and potential severity for Zithromax SJS, the FDA remains satisfied that considering those indications for which Zithromax is intended, benefits outweigh the risks and consumers are properly apprised of those risks, however small.

And the risks for Zithromax Stevens Johnson Syndrome are, indeed, small. But any SJS patient who has been made to endure the horrific pain and disfigurement that often accompanies the rare condition will put that “small” risk in a much different context…