Diminished ciprofloxacin-induced chondrotoxicity by supplementation with magnesium and vitamin E in immature rats

Pfister K, Mazur D, Vormann J, Stahlmann R · Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy

Ciprofloxacin produced typical juvenile cartilage lesions (17 lesions in 11 of 12 rats on the standard diet); vitamin E cut the count to 10 (41% fewer, p < 0.05), magnesium to 6 (65%, p < 0.01) and both together to 3 in 3 rats (82%, p < 0.01), with plasma and cartilage magnesium raised by up to 54% and 28% — supporting a chelation/oxidative mechanism for quinolone chondrotoxicity.

Population

48 juvenile Wistar rats, 12 per diet group (6 male, 6 female), fed from day 24 to day 34

Intervention

Two subcutaneous doses of ciprofloxacin 600 mg/kg on day 32, with 10 days of standard feed, 0.3% vitamin E, 0.5% magnesium, or both

Comparator

Ciprofloxacin on standard diet

Limitations

Juvenile rodent model at supratherapeutic exposure; relevance to adult human articular cartilage unproven. No funding statement; one author at a private nutrition institute (Prof. Vormann GmbH).