Since its initial discovery, penicillin has saved millions of people around the world. Penicillin is a group of antibiotics that are used to cure a wide range of bacterial infections. One of the best benefits of penicillin other than its ability to treat bacterial infections is that it can be used in multiple ways. You can take penicillin orally or via injections.

Alexander Fleming has the credit to his name of discovering penicillin in his laboratory back in September 1928. However, it was first used in 1942 because there was a lot of work to do before it could be used as a medicine.

Penicillin is a group of antibiotics, there are many family members of this antibacterial drugs that are effective against additional bacteria. With the introduction of penicillin, the medical world changed completely.

Probable Problems with Penicillin

Although penicillin is widely used, just like other drugs, there can be some possible problems associated with it. Some of the problems that may occur are:

  1. Breast Feeding: It is possible that breastfeeding mothers may pass small amounts of penicillin to their babies. This may cause allergic reactions to the babies including fungal infections, diarrhea, and others.
  2. Bleeding Problems: Some types of penicillin including piperacillin, carbenicillin, and ticarcillin may make pre-existing bleeding problems quite worse.
  3. Kidney Disease: Patients having kidney problems have an increased risk of getting the kidney problems severe so they should use penicillin after consultation with their doctor and under medical care.
  4. Gastrointestinal Problems: Patients suffering from stomach ulcers or other intestinal problems are quite likely to develop colitis so they need to be extra cautious while taking penicillin.

Side Effects

Besides these possible outcomes of taking penicillin, there are some other side effects as well. Some are very highly likely to occur while others are very rare.

Common Side Effects

Common Side effects of penicillin include:

  • Vaginal itching and discharge
  • Sore mouth and tongue
  • Bad taste
  • Diarrhea
  • A headache and Migraine
  • Shortness of breath
  • Severe joint pain
  • Sudden fainting
  • Redness on the face

Rare Side Effects

These side effects are not very common but their possibility cannot be ignored. Some of these are:

  • Anxiety or some sort of fear
  • Sense of approaching death
  • Yellowing of the skin and eyes
  • Sore throat
  • Abdominal pain
  • Vomiting and constant nausea
  • Unusual bleeding

Penicillin is quite helpful in eradicating bacteria but intensive care should be taken while consuming it. Countless lives have been saved over the years around the world with penicillin. However, with the onward march of antibiotic resistance, clinicians are quite worried about how the antibiotics of the coming times will cross this hurdle.

It is also worth mentioning that penicillin should not be taken with alcohol. The reason is that it may alter the effectiveness of penicillin and the benefits may not pass to the patient in the desired way. That is the reason why penicillin is advised to be consumed without any other drug.

DISCLAIMER: The medical information on this site is provided as an information resource only, and is not to be used or relied on for any diagnostic or treatment purposes. This information is not intended to be patient education, does not create any patient-physician relationship, and should not be used as a substitute for professional diagnosis and treatment.