If you have gone to the doctor lately for an infection, you may have been prescribed metronidazole. You might be wondering what metronidazole, also known as flagyl, is used for.
About Flagyl (Metronidazole antibiotic)
Metronidazole is a highly effective antibiotic used for many different types of infections. Not only is it effective against many types of bacterial infections that are difficult to treat with other methods, such as Clostridium (which can cause tetanus and botulism), but it is also effective against many parasitic infections, such as giardia, which is a common cause of diarrhea, especially in hikers. It is taken in pill form and must be prescribed by a doctor. Many of the diseases caused by organisms that can be treated by metronidazole have very similar symptoms to diseases caused by organisms that are not treatable, so it is important to go to a doctor for a diagnosis and prescription first. It is also highly active against certain infections that are common in women, known as trichomoniasis.
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How to take Flagyl?
It is very important that this antibiotic be taken precisely as prescribed, because although you may feel better after taking only a few pills, that is not enough to kill off all of the bugs that are making you feel sick, and they will come back stronger and be resistant to this medication. You may have to stay on it for several weeks in order to fully treat your infection. There are several major ways that metronidazole is administered; it is generally administered in relatively large doses because of the urgency of treatment by the time the diagnosis is given. For trichomoniasis, or for treatment-resistant patients, a single dose of several grams may be given orally. For other conditions, it may be several large doses over a few days. For urgent conditions, it may be given through an IV for several days, even weeks.
You may also be wondering how it works. The answer is slightly complicated and lies in the realm of cell biology. What happens is that the drug is absorbed into your tissues, where the parasite also absorbs it. When the parasite absorbs it, it digests it chemically- just like your stomach does with food- and breaks it up into two components. These two components link to proteins and cause those proteins to fold into inactive shapes- picture cooking an egg white. Those proteins can no longer serve the functions they need to in the cell, so the cell dies. Your cells are safe because it doesn’t happen in the presence of oxygen.
