Evaluation of analgesic activity of levofloxacin in human experimental pain model

Abstract

Abstract: Levofloxacin, an optically active isomer of ofloxacin, exerts broad spectrum antibacterial activity. Apart from its antibacterial action, experimental studies have documented antinociceptive properties in animal pain models suggesting an analgesic effect. This study was conducted with the aim to evaluate the analgesic activity of levofloxacin in healthy human volunteers.: This was an open label, prospective, non-randomized, interventional study conducted on 12 apparently healthy volunteers at a tertiary care teaching hospital in India. Permission from the Institutional Ethics Committee was obtained. After obtaining informed consent, volunteers fulfilling the inclusion criteria were enrolled. Analgesic activity was assessed by Cola cap and sphygmomanometer, a human experimental pain model. Observation of pain threshold and tolerance was recorded at baseline and at an interval of 2 h and 4 h after administration of levofloxacin (500 mg oral) in all 12 subjects. The results were analysed using repeated measures one way analysis of variance.: The mean age of the volunteers was 27.5±3.26 years. A statistically significant increase in the pain threshold and tolerance was found at 2 h and 4 h when compared to baseline.: Levofloxacin exhibited significant analgesic activity in a human pain model and can be used in infections associated with pain or for pre-operative prophylaxis. Further investigations are required to understand the precise mechanism and pathway of antinociception exhibited by levofloxacin.