Scientists at the University of Illinois at Chicago have discovered that azithromycin, which is used in the fight against the complications of coronavirus infection, can trigger a heart attack if taken with certain other drugs. The deadly danger of the drug is reported in the article, published In the magazine JAMA Network Open.
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Researchers analyzed data from more than four million patients and found that co-administration of azithromycin and drugs that affect the electrical impulses of the heart was associated with a 40 percent increase in the frequency of cardiac abnormalities, including syncope, increased heart rate, and even cardiac arrest. Drugs that affect electrical impulses include blood pressure drugs, antidepressants, antimalarial drugs, and opioids.
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Scientists found that one in five people who were prescribed azithromycin also took drugs that lengthen the QT interval.
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The risk of cardiac events while taking azithromycin was assessed in comparison with amoxicillin, another antibiotic that has never been associated with cardiac dysfunction and does not affect the QT interval. Cardiac events included ventricular arrhythmias, fainting, palpitations and cardiac arrest, and death.
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