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Acute Onset Sensory Polyneuropathy Due to Metronidazole Therapy

Jitendra Singh1, Virendra Atam2, Anju Dinkar3

  • 1Senior Resident.

The Journal of the Association of Physicians of India
|September 10, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Metronidazole can cause neurologic issues like peripheral neuropathy, especially with high doses or long-term use. This case highlights sensory polyneuropathy developing even after a short, low-dose metronidazole course for liver abscess.

Area of Science:

  • Neurology
  • Pharmacology
  • Infectious Diseases

Background:

  • Metronidazole is a widely used antibiotic for anaerobic infections.
  • Neurologic complications, including peripheral neuropathy, are known side effects.
  • Peripheral neuropathy is typically associated with high doses and prolonged treatment durations.

Observation:

  • A patient with a liver abscess developed sensory polyneuropathy.
  • The neuropathy occurred after 11 days of metronidazole therapy.
  • The cumulative dose of metronidazole was low.

Findings:

  • This case demonstrates that sensory polyneuropathy can occur with metronidazole even at low cumulative doses and short treatment durations.
  • The development of neuropathy was unexpected given the treatment parameters.

Implications:

  • Clinicians should be vigilant for neurologic complications of metronidazole, regardless of dose or duration.
  • Further research may be needed to understand the risk factors for metronidazole-induced neuropathy.
  • This finding may influence treatment guidelines for liver abscess and other metronidazole-treated conditions.

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