If the antibiotic ciprofloxacin is over a year old will it still be effective?

It's true the effectiveness of a drug may decrease over time, but much of the original potency still remains even a decade after the expiration date. Excluding nitroglycerin, insulin, and liquid antibiotics, most medications are as long-lasting as the ones tested by the military. If your life does not depend on an expired drug -- such as headache, common cold, or constipation -- you may take the medication and see what happens. Medical authorities uniformly say it is safe to take drugs past their expiration date -- no matter how "expired" the drugs presumably are.