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Neuropathy noted in children taking prolonged courses of linezolid
Nambiar S. Pediatrics. 2011;doi:10.1542/peds.2010-2125.
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Neuropathy may occur with prolonged use of linezolid in children, according to a study published online.
Infectious Diseases in Children Editorial Board member John S. Bradley, MD, and colleagues from Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego looked at the FDA’s adverse events reporting system for all neuropathy cases in children from 2000 to 2009.
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The researchers identified eight pediatric cases of neuropathy associated with use of linezolid, with two children having both peripheral and ocular neuropathy, and five having peripheral neuropathy alone.
The researchers said the children who had ocular neuropathy were likely to report decreased color vision and acuity. Children with neuropathy typically reported paresthesias, numbness, pain and weakness.
Symptoms typically resolved between 2 weeks and 6 months, often in association with the medicine being discontinued, they said.
“With the increasing incidence of infections due to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, there is an increasing clinical need for use of linezolid, particularly for children who have not responded to standard antimicrobial therapy,” the researchers wrote, adding that their data suggested increasing use of this medication, despite the study being underpowered to detect this usage. “It is likely that, in the future, more pediatric cases of linezolid-associated neuropathy will be seen.”
The researchers cited data from Linam and colleagues that suggest that children undergoing treatment with linezolid for more than 3 months be continually evaluated for neuropathy.
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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