Project #183:
Trends in Fluoroquinolone use and reported adverse events during the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic led to a shift towards managing more patients out of hospital, due to concerns about transmission of COVID-19 within hospitals. Fluoroquinolones are a type of antibiotic which can be given orally in tablet form, rather than into a drip. This means that patients can take them at home. In certain infections, for instance infections with Pseudomonas species (a type of bacteria which can cause chest and urine infections) they are the only oral option available. Therefore fluoroquinolones are a valuable drug class to allow patients to be managed at home, providing benefits for patients and the health system. However, over many years there have been concerns about the side effects caused by fluoroquinolones and this has limited their use.

We hypothesize that during the COVID-19 pandemic the amount of fluoroquinolones prescribed will have increased, as a result of efforts to manage more patients out of hospital. We will analyse whether this led to an increase in the number of side effects associated with fluoroquinolone use. This will help us to better understand the rate of side effects associated with fluoroquinolone use and whether these antibiotics cause more side effects than other commonly prescribed antibiotics.

We hope that our study will allow doctors and patients to better understand the risks associated with fluoroquinolone use to make informed decisions about patient care.