부산대학교 도서관

Metronidazole has been widely used to treat various anaerobic infections without producing major side effects. However, neuropathy is one of the complications of prolonged administration or relatively high cumulative doses of metronidazole. We report the case of a 54-year-old woman who was treated with metronidazole for a liver abscess. She complained of numbness and tingling in her limbs after 2 weeks treatment (the cumulative dose of metronidazole was 28 g). On the 18th day of the course of metronidazole, the patient was discharged from the hospital and continued to take metronidazole orally due to the improvement of infection symptoms. During this period, her neurological symptoms continued worsening. On the 25th day, the physician suspected that the neurological symptoms were side effects of metronidazole and discontinued the drug (the cumulative dose of metronidazole had reached 49 g). However, her symptoms of peripheral neuropathy did not resolve after cessation of metronidazole. She still needs medication to relieve her neurological symptoms after 3 years of follow-up. On the basis of this case, patients being treated with metronidazole should be closely monitored for neurotoxicity such as paresthesia, numbness, tingling, and burning sensation. The pros and cons of metronidazole treatment should be carefully evaluated to avoid permanent nerve damage.