Furazolidone for giardiasis

Examples

Generic Name	Brand Name
furazolidone	Furoxone

How It Works

This medicine kills G. lamblia in the digestive tract.

This medicine comes in liquid form, which can be easily taken by infants older than 1 month of age or by small children, for treatment of giardiasis.

Why It Is Used

Furazolidone is used to kill the parasite (Giardia lamblia) that causes giardiasis.

If symptoms and history strongly suggest the cause is giardia infection, some doctors may prescribe the medicine before doing further testing.

How Well It Works

Furazolidone cures giardiasis 80% to 85% of the time.¹ This medicine does not work quite as well as metronidazole (Flagyl). But it may be a good choice for children who can take it as a liquid and may like its flavor more than other medicines used to treat giardiasis.

Other tests to look for G. lamblia may be needed to make sure that the infection has been cured.

Side Effects

Side effects of this medicine may include:

• Nausea and vomiting.
• Brown discoloration of urine.
• Mild destruction of red blood cells (hemolysis) in people who lack an enzyme called glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase.

To avoid harmful reactions, people taking this medicine should not drink alcohol.

See Drug Reference for a full list of side effects. (Drug Reference is not available in all systems.)

What To Think About

Furazolidone (Furoxone) is often used for children, because it comes in liquid form.

People who take furazolidone (Furoxone) should not eat certain foods, including some types of cheese, chocolate, red wine, or certain meats such as salami or liver. Eating these foods can be dangerous.

Furazolidone (Furoxone) should not be taken with monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), which are medicines used to treat depression.

There is some evidence that furazolidone (Furoxone) may cause cancer in animals if used for a long period of time. But most experts feel this risk in humans is low.

Complete the new medication information form (PDF) (What is a PDF document?) to help you understand this medication.

Author:	Maria G. Essig, MS, ELS	Last Updated: October 16, 2007
Medical Review:	E. Gregory Thompson, MD - Internal Medicine W. David Colby IV, MSc, MD, FRCPC - Infectious Disease
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