Retrospective analysis of risk factors for levofloxacin-induced liver injury

Abstract

Levofloxacin is used as a first-line drug for the treatment of Legionella pneumonia. However, the relatively high incidence of drug-induced liver injury (DILI) remains a clinical problem. Based on the available patient data, this study aimed to identify the risk factors for DILI before levofloxacin administration. Multiple logistic regression analyses suggested that male sex (odds ratio [OR], 6.975; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.737–28.000; p = 0.006), elevated C-reactive protein level (OR, 1.182; 95% CI, 1.089–1.283; p = 0.0006), and high haemoglobin level (OR, 1.640; 95% CI, 1.226–2.195; p = 0.001) before administration of levofloxacin were risk factors for DILI. Possible treatment with alternative drugs should be considered in male patients with elevated C-reactive protein and haemoglobin levels. Moreover, close monitoring of liver function tests when levofloxacin is administered may prevent the development and severity of DILI.

Keywords:

• Levofloxacin
• drug-induced liver injury
• risk factor
• sex
• C-reactive protein
• haemoglobin

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Ethics statement

This study complied with the ethical guidelines for life science and medical research involving human subjects, and we collected patient information using an opt-out method after obtaining approval from the Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Tokyo (approval number: 2529).

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.