DS on erythomycin and can't stop vomiting

[neighbour]

and says feels like someone has punched him in the stomach. He's 8. I know that sickness can be a "normal" side effect of this type of antibiotic, but is this extreme? I tried NHS direct but they're apparently overwhelmed and "only dealing with emergencies."

I wonder if anyone knows how long this is likely to last and at what point I should worry. He is kneeling on bathroom floor and shows no sign of getting rid of the nausea. It's been going on about an hour. I've tried to give him little sips of drinks, but he can't tolerate any.

Could he be allergic to it? My ds1 is allergic to it and pencillin.

yes definately one of the main side effects of this type of antibiotic. What is he having it for, how long has he been on it.?

i am allergic to this antibiotic, made me heave and felt like your son describes actually, i was doubled over in pain at some points. its quite a common medicine to react to.

also does your son take antihistimines at all? as erythromycin reacts to with these quite often and causes vomiting.

poor chap I was prescribed it a few weeks ago and by 3rd/4th dose was throwing up violently. Tried both an hour before and with food , made no odds. Dr told me to stop taking it and won't prescribe it again.

thank you everyone.

just got hold of doctor who said he should stop taking it.

He's been taking it for an ear infection.

He's unfortunately allergic to penicillin and cephalosporins, which would have been the other, better choices to treat the infection.

I don't think this is an allergy--I think it's probably just an awful side effect.

No, he isn't taking an antihistamene.

Does anyone know how long these symptoms will last? He last took the medicine about 4 and a half hours ago.

thank you--so worried! he's never been the healthiest chap in the world, so I really really worry about him when he's sick. He's usually so uncomplaining, so this must be absolutely awful.

I took one dose at about 1.30 and was able to eat and keep it down , being a tad careful, by early evening.

any better today ?

LIZS thank you so much for asking.

Doctor told me to take him off the erythromycin immediately, which I did. His stomach was mostly OK maybe 5 hours after I last posted on Sunday, but he still felt a bit unwell the next day (Monday) so kept him home from school. He's back to his old self now. Are you finished with your course of erythromycin?

I took about 5 doses and stopped . Went back to gp who gave me another prescription in case symptoms worsened but found my chest was clear

I am also allergic to this antibiotic.

From its Wikipedia page: "Gastrointestinal disturbances, such as diarrhea, nausea, abdominal pain, and vomiting, are fairly common, so erythromycin tends not to be prescribed as a first-line drug."

Why was your DS prescribed this drug? It is a VERY potent antibiotic. I was told (when hospitalized after several days of hives on more than half of my body surface) that it is typically prescribed only when other antibiotics fail, or for very serious diseases like atypical tuberculosis and menengitis. Not that I needed further proof that the doctor who prescribed it to me for a simple skin infection was a moron

I'm taking it at the moment, and although I have felt very nauseous at times, I haven't actually vomited (thank God).

CoteDAzur

I'm afraid this is the only drug my DS is "allowed" to take because he's allergic to the first-line drugs: penicillin and cephalosporins. I mean serious anaphylactic allergic.

He's not allergic per se to erythromycin, but his body can't tolerate it.

These three families of drugspenicillin, cephalosporins and erythromycinare the the only antibiotics "approved" for children, if I understood my doctor correctly.

This worries me very much, because if DS gets a serious infection, what are his alternatives? None, except to tolerate the abdominal pain, vomitting etc that CoteDAzur described from the Wikipedia page.

My doctor admitted it's an "awful" drug, but that it's the only one my son is "allowed" to take. Scary! I mean, I seriously don't think DS can tolerate erythromycin for more that a day and a half, and yet the other choices would kill him! Maybe I should start a thread on allergies now, and hope for some reassurance.

If your son needs antibiotics in the future, it may be worth discussing with your GP whether Clarithromycin would be suitable. Its the same "family" as Erythromycin, but some people can tolerate it better.

Those three are not the only classes of antibiotics, though. See here.

Take a look at common childhood antibiotics. There are more than ten.

But unfortunately the majority of the drugs listed are actually Penicillins or Cephalosporins, which are not options due to his allergy. Trimethoprim is used for urine infections and would not be effective against most ear/throat/chest infections. So still limited to Erythromycin family (Clarithromycin, Azithromycin)

i am allergic to erythromycin, it could be the same thing

I am allergic to penicillins and erythromycin and can take Vibromycin with no problems. That may be an option for him

It would depend what was the matter with him (what he could take in the future)

I would get your GP to refer you to the allergy clinic and have some scratch/patch testing done for the various antibiotics - then try some doses (when he is HEALTHY) at 10%

We are getting this done for DD (who is 5) for similar reasons

Was it liquid ethromycin? Some of the tablets are treated so that they don't dissolve until they hit the lower intestine - that might be an option?

(I am currently on gastro-resistant erythromycin for Strep throat - DD could take it last week so was on cephalexin via IV last week for same thing - although she isn't allergic to cephlasporins we want to try her on penicillin under controlled conditions because me and DH are both analphylaxic with penicillin so it wasn't recommended except under controlled conditions at the allergy clinic. Cephalexin is evil stuff but you can't administer ethromycin via IV because it rips your veins to shreds apparently.)

'DD could take it' - I mean she had Strep throat but couldn't take ethromycin because she had a vomiting bug too, and you can't take ethromycin via IV

Well that worries the hell out of me MP, but it's nothing I didn't already know. DS needed IV antibiotics once, and I worry that he might need it again and we'll have no options. (Yuck at the ripping to shreds image.)

Lazyhippo is right about the limited options.

I gather there are a few more options when he's an adult.

We have been to an allergy clinic, and was told that DS is deffo allergic to cephalosporins and (the whole) penicillin family, and that he should wear a medic-alert bracelet everyday, which he does. Good luck with your dd.

And to answer your question MP, he was on the tablet form of erythro--which I, too, thought might be easier on the stomach. . .but I guess not!

Erythromycin can be given IV if needed, and shouldn't cause any more problems to the vein than other antibiotics, so long as given carefully.

That's so reassuring lazyhippo, thanks