What Causes Lightheadedness,dizziness And Weakness In Legs When On Pneumonia Medication?

Posted on Wed, 22 Jan 2014

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Wed, 22 Jan 2014 Answered on

Fri, 7 Feb 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : Sir or ma'am. I was diagnosed with pneumonia in the left lower lobe 8 days ago. I was hospitalized for twelve hours due to lack of moving air on the left side and the need for several neb treatments. I was released when vitals came within normal limits and after two liters saline infused via I. I was prescribed prednisone 50 mg once daily, levonthroxyn 500 mg once daily and tussin gel caps 200 mg up to 3 times per day as necessary. My primary has weened me to 25 mg prednisone once daily, which I stopped today. My question is two fold. My lungs are clear on auscultation; there are no more wheezing or rails. First, especially at night, I'm getting very lightheaded and dizzy spells. Secondly, I am very weak in my legs. Previous medical history : asthma, two heart episodes. Anxiety/ptsd past six months following traumatic event. Profession : rescue swimmer for United States Coast Guard. Exercise : cross train including several days a week of swimming over a mile and weight lifting. Allergies : benzodiazipenes, sulfates

Answered by Dr. Dr. Shruti Rijhwani (1 hour later)

Brief Answer: Follows. Detailed Answer: Dear Sir, Thank you for posting your query on XXXXXXX Well looking into your problem I would like to tell you that your treating doctor has rightly prescribed the medicines for you . You took levofloxacin I suppose because the spelling you wrote is confusing . Anyways it belongs to floroquinolones class of drugs and prolongs the QT interval of heat contraction which can some times leads to dizziness but since you have stopped it now it will settle down. Other thing is after having pneumonia during recovery phase feeling dizzy , pain in legs are common , these are reffered to as myalgia . You can take paracetamol for this after consultation with your treating doctor . A multivitamin supplement is highly recommended for you since you are in recovery phase. Take care. Dr. Shruti

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar