I suffer from chronic urinary tract infections and require multiple courses of antibiotics, whenever I get an infection. Every time I take antibiotics I suffer from extreme nausea and sickness, I have been informed by my doctor that this is a common side effect of most oral antibiotics. Would having antibiotics via the intravenous (IV) route avoid this side effect?

Unfortunately, nausea and sickness is a common side effect of taking antibiotics. Having antibiotics via the IV route would not necessarily avoid this side effect. Furthermore, IV antibiotics are not without side effects and should only be used for severe infections that do not respond to oral antibiotics. The most common side effects of IV antibiotics include:

• Rash
• Itching
• Diarrhoea
• Redness at the site of needle
• Nausea/stomach upset

If the symptoms of nausea with antibiotics are severe, your doctor may prescribe anti-sickness medication to help with this. You should always seek advice from your doctor and discuss options that will help with the symptoms and control the side effects of taking antibiotics long term.