Antibiotics - possible cause of CH?

[Jamesmsv]

I don't think this is particularly new news but I read that, in the last decade, studies have shown a particular class of antibiotics can cause permanent nerve damage. They are known as Fluoroquinolone antibiotics.

It occurred to me that, with the prevalence of antibiotic prescriptions, could this be a common factor amongst CH sufferers? Without asking for my entire medical history I cannot be sure if any I've taken in the past are within that class, but it's certainly a possibility. The risk of nerve damage is small, but so is the prevalence of CH. 

Here's a link to a good article on the matter:

https://neurosciencenews.com/antibiotics-nerve-damage-13083/#:~:text=Common antibiotic may increase nerve damage and peripheral neuropathy risk,-FeaturedNeurologyNeuroscience&text=Summary%3A Fluoroquinolone antibiotics%2C such as,neuropathy associated with amoxicillin use.

[Pebblesthecorgi]

Side effects from antibiotics in the quinolone class are often related to dose and duration. The most common concerning "side effect" is spontaneous tendon rupture particularly in older folks.  This is relatively rare.  Quinolones can also affect the metabolism of other medications.  As a class they are relatively new on the medical scene.  Cluster headaches have been along long before antibiotics so I would be very suspicious they have anything to do with cluster headache etiology.  It would be more  likely the condition the antibiotic is treating contributed to the attack rather than the treatment.  Disease has been around much longer than treatments.

Edited August 11, 2020 by Pebblesthecorgi

[Dr. Julie]

I'm sorry, but no. This hypothesis makes some giant leaps although I understand that it seems unclear. "Nerve damage" is far too generic to link together disparate reports. More importantly, research suggests CH is signaling failure originating in the hypothalmus, which is consistent with our symptoms and pathology. Our pain may be mediated via the trimengial nerve but not because of primary nerve damage. 

 

Julie

[Jamesmsv]

Thank you for clarifying, it's good to get a professional opinion on these things