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Bactrim for Bacterial Infection User Reviews (Page 2)

Bactrim has an average rating of 5.2 out of 10 from a total of 51 reviews for the treatment of Bacterial Infection. 39% of reviewers reported a positive experience, while 43% reported a negative experience.

Reviews for Bactrim

  • White...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • February 19, 2017

"I had a bacterial infection and feeling ill, and the doctor prescribed Bactrim. I didn't think it was helping as my illness took a turn for the worst. I had fever, chills, muscle weakness and pain, stomach pain, and I couldn't get out of bed. I'd start to feel better after a few hours and thought it was finally working. Nope. I took my next dose of Bactrim and all the symptoms came back full strength and I was severely ill again. I finally linked it to Bactrim and stopped taking it. My symptoms cleared up over the course of a few days. I learned my grandmother and mother have a severe sulfa allergy, and I found out the hard way I do too. Words just don't describe how sick I was on this medication."

1 / 10
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  • giasr...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • July 2, 2021

"My father was given Bactrim for a bad urinary tract infection and it put him into Kidney Failure. My daughter took Bactrim for a staph infection under her arm and she was so sick she could not get out of bed for most of the treatment time. Avoid this if at all possible and make sure your doctor is aware of all of your diagnoses. I did do it's job, especially with my daughter, she could see results the next day"

8 / 10
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  • Storm...
  • January 23, 2017

"First time I got MRSA it started as a small pimple under my arm and quickly became a massive abscess over night. I went to the ER and doctor told me it was MRSA and prescribed me 10 days worth of bactrim. With in four days the infection stopped and the wound started to heal. It was completely healed before then ten days but I took all the bactrim as directed by the doctor. Then about 7 days ago I noticed a large pimple and got it checked it and it was MRSA again but my whole leg was swollen. They lanced it and gave me another ten days of bactrim. I'm about five days in and the swelling has resided and the pain is much less. No side effects other then a constant headache and abdominal cramps. Seems to work good for MRSA and staph infection"

8 / 10
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13 Report

Frequently asked questions

  • macyme
  • March 12, 2012

"I was prescribed Bactrim and Keflex to treat an traumatic force injury to my shin which a month later turned into a bacterial type infection. I was on these 2 anitbiotics for 3 doses (100 mg Bactrim) and I got small spots of hive-like bumps under both forearms, on my hand, and on the backside of the injured shin. They took me off those antibiotics and without taking any other medicines yet that day, approximately 8 hrs later I looked like I had the chicken pox. It's Day 3 after stopping Bactrim and I'm just starting to get some relief from the intense itching ( I did have a steroid IV today to try to help this)."

1 / 10
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19 Report
  • Overit
  • January 2, 2021

"I was prescribed Bactrim to treat stenotrophomonas maltophilia in my lungs. I have had a persistent cough for 4 years and this bacteria was found after having a bronchoscopy. My cough got better but the medication caused a ganglion cyst I have in my hand to become very inflamed and painful. The cyst is in the palm of my hand at the base of my middle finger. The finger became so painful I could hardly bend my finger. When I stopped taking the medication it went away. I did complete the course of treatment because it was important to me to get rid of the infection but that was my only side effect."

8 / 10
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Are you taking this medicine?

  • Masha
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • November 9, 2022

"I saw so many negative comments and got so scared but my doctor insisted that I'll be okay, and it really was okay for me. I was taking it for intestinal bacterial infection, since nothing helped me for a week and I felt horrible. This helped me right away, after first dose. I was taking it for 5 days and I was completely healthy after just 2 days of taking it, along with some probiotics and other medications."

10 / 10
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  • Ruxin
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • March 17, 2019

"I was given a three day supply of bactrim for my post vasectomy recovery. I've just finished the second of two days and so far so good. One side effect though, and it may be an accidental benefit, it's cleaning me out- in fact everything feels better and things are more normal in consistency. I haven't increased or changed my diet in the last few days, just increased output and I feel better overall."

9 / 10
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9 Report

More FAQ

  • Life...
  • February 2, 2022

"Being Immuno-compromised by steroids taken for another ailment, I contracted a bacterial infection (Disseminated Nocardiosis) that spread throughout my body - brain, kidney, lung. (AKA: Sepsis) Initially I was hospitalized on an IV of a liquid form of Bactrim for 30 days followed by 11 months on oral Bactrim at 3200mg/day. No noticeable side-effects. It saved my life."

10 / 10
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  • kandida
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • November 23, 2015

"I have a small either cyst or some type of mass on back of neck under skin. Doctor said it could be due to some type of staph. He prescribed me Bactrim aka as sulfameth.trimethoprim. He said two weeks to take this and if it does not go away we will need to Lance it. Which in a way I'm glad, it bothers me. Anyways I went to pharmacy to get my medicine and went home. I actually started the same day taking my pill. Friday Saturday and Sunday I felt ok. But come Monday about 3 am I got up and had diarrhea, multiple times I felt nauseous & achey . 7 am I felt it in my throat I vomited and after that I had a horrible headache. Can't eat, I feel as though my joints are stiff. Doc is changing my meds. No sulpha again !"

7 / 10
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  • DPRev...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • January 15, 2023

"I have not had a good experience using Bactrim. The first day's dosage caused no side effects however by day 6 I had headaches, severe heartburn, nausea, chills, severe muscle weakness, depression, anxiety, and generally felt unwell. I took each dose with a full glass of water and a full stomach as recommended. I am supposed to take this for 4 more days, but I will call my doctor for an alternative treatment."

1 / 10
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  • Kreee
  • February 10, 2011

"I recentaly got an ear piercing called a snug. It became so infected I had to see an ENT. He prescribes me Bactrim and I have been on it for 4 days. He had to drain my ear, and it hurt a lot. I just came home from my second appointment, and he took out the packing he put in from draining it, and just put a band aid over it and told me to compress hot water over it for a while. Bactrim has given me no side effects, and it works amazingly."

10 / 10
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15 Report
  • Painful...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • March 30, 2022

"I was prescribed this for an infection on my scalp. I took two doses and it started with muscle twitches all night long with a racing heart. I almost threw up several times and my stomach was very unhappy, which was to be expected but it was more severe than I thought. I haven’t taken a dose in 2 days and since then I have had a nagging zinging pain in my left shoulder. I also have had a weird sharp pain in my right forearm."

1 / 10
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  • Ericka
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • July 17, 2019

"I had a boil that was so deeply embedded in my skin, they took photos @ hospital. Was given Bactrim @ hospital. By the time I got home, had huge purple bruise on right arm near elbow. Assumed it was a bug bite. Filled script, took Bactrim....blisters formed all over my body. Red & purple bumps & spots formed all over my body. Skin was peeling & itching like crazy. This was a definite allergic reaction. Had never been given that before. Hydrocodone was prescribed for pain. It made me break out in hives all over. Two more drugs to add to my list of allergies."

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  • Anonymous
  • November 9, 2012

"Seems to be working, am impressed with it. Had a sinus infection, throat infection, earache and women type of rash under my arms. All seem to be improving. I have only started taking the medication though. I am hoping for the best from what others here had to say."

6 / 10
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  • NYGOS
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • January 29, 2017

"For a few days I had what I thought was a pimple in the opening of my right nostril. Finally I softened it with warm water and it popped. BIG MISTAKE! DONT DO IT! Within a day the right nostril was reddish purple and swollen, my cheek bones hurt, my upper gums were enflamed, even my teeth hurt. There were now 3 more in my nose. I went to urgent care and Dr said it was cellulitis/staph infection, put me on Bactrim (2x's a day/10days) and topical (Mupirocin 2%) that can be used in nose even though it says not for internal use: mouth, nose, ears. This is my 5th dose, btwn day 2&3. Still in a lot of pain but original "pimple" seems to have a brownish coloring possibly on the way to scabbing Definitely headache provoking, taking with Tylenol."

6 / 10
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  • Denise
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • May 8, 2022

"Do not take bactrim the side effects are awful. My side effects were that I was dizzy, my mouth was so sore I couldn't hardly eat. Had bad leg pains, no appetite, nausea, headaches I would break out into a sweat..I stopped taking this been off of it 3 days and still feel terrible..Never take this again!!!!"

1 / 10
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  • Lissy
  • September 26, 2020

"I had a lump removed from my breast. It ended up getting infected from the inside. So I was prescribed bactrim it was about a week and a half before I noticed I was developing a rash. It went through my whole house cleaning and racking my brain trying to figure out why I was having an allergic reaction. I didn't even think of having an allergic reaction to the medicine. So I called my Dr and they took me off it ASAP. I didn't help my infection and it made me break out everywhere and I mean everywhere lol!"

1 / 10
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  • fulst...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • June 26, 2021

"The medication works, my stomach just hates it. I had surgery next two places on my foot 05/21/21 and had some difficulty with healing on one incision site. There was a lot of redness so dr prescribed Bactrim as I am high risk for infection. I didn’t notice any issues the first day (1 pill in the evening), though the redness and swelling went down right away, but after I’d taken the second dose about 18-20 hours after the first I started feeling really nauseous, I am extremely tired, and diarrhea has set in. I have had issues with other antibiotics in the past as well."

10 / 10
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  • Null
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • June 29, 2022

"You might lose ya Penis taking this if you're allergic. I took Bactrim for a severe ear infection. Bactrim itself is very fast and rids you completely of all symptoms. HOWEVER, it can be very unstable. On day 3 of my 800mg/twice daily dose I developed a Fixed Drug Eruption to it, hence I basically developed symptoms similar to that as a yeast infection, but the guy version. Normally started out as inflamed genitals, then started developing severe blisters and spots on my pecker. If you acquire similar symptoms as those listed, PLEASE SEE A DOCTOR YOU TRUST AND TELL THEM ABOUT THE sulfameth/trimethoprim. Other symptoms may be painful blisters and or spots stemming from the mouth, underarm, and lips. 2/3 doctors I went to disregarded it as just inflammation. But finally had a 3rd doctor realize that the medicine is giving me an allergic reaction, and to not take Bactrim. As of now my willy looks absolutely horrid and urination is giving me nightmares."

5 / 10
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  • ymous...
  • December 9, 2020

"I was in a hospital room for two nights after a TURP procedure( TransUrethral Resection of the prostate. side note - TURP ruined my love life. imho get prescribed on some type of prostate shrinkage medication ASAP, or the newer procedures for enlarged prostate , and bladder retention can also be neurogenic . None of the urologists I saw ever even did the simple digital up the rectum up the rectum ) in same hospital . When I got back home, my family doctor thought I probably caught the c-diff in the hospital . She tried me on "this, that and the other" antibiotic specified to treat c-diff . If anything , things got worse. After several months of being on different antibiotics , I requested she try bactrim . I cannot say for certain it was the bactrim which "cured" my c-diff but after being put on that bactrim regimen things did get better and for all intents and purposes my c-diff "went away" , cured, hasn't been a problem ever since ."

10 / 10
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  • Ingrown...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • March 13, 2022

"Folliculitis - had a bad ingrown hair that drained a bit after hot compress and exfoliating but wouldn’t completely resolve. After 8 wks I decided antibiotics might be the solution. I had taken antibiotics for an ingrown hair once before about 20 years ago. I had no known allergies and I’ve been on a lot of meds over the years for rosacea and cystic acne breakouts including Accutane, Doxycycline, steroids etc. A friend of mine had Bactrim and I decided to try ONE pilI - certain it would be fine. I was wrong. Within 30 minutes I broke out in hives. I had 3 on my face, several on my arms and legs. The hives stopped after the initial breakout and although I was worried, I was keen to just keep watch and not go the ER. They finally went down about 24 hours later. I spent the night being very anxious / paranoid and feeling really off in general. I took two doses of Benedryl and it’s now been 36 hours and I feel fine but it was scary. I am one of the unlucky 3% with a Sulfa Allergy."

1 / 10
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  • Whodis
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • August 18, 2021

"For me Bactrim is the only antibiotic for UTIs that doesn’t give me massive side effects and gets ride of it fast! I have chronic bladder infections and tried them all and it’s my favorite. (If you can have a favorite antibiotic) I know everyone is different but it’s the best one for me!"

10 / 10
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  • Marisa
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • December 8, 2021

"Bactrim is the worst medication you could ever use. In fact I could never consider it as a medication, again It gave me Thrombocytopenia, and also a horrible burning sensation in lungs and head. The first 2 adverse effects are still bothering me a year later! (not every month, anyway it's horrible) It happened after only taking bactrim for three days...It didn't help me. Of course I told the doctor and I stopped taking It."

1 / 10
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  • Kevin
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • January 3, 2022

"Was given this after a suspected epidermis infection after hernia surgery. The swelling went down by the 6th day. Only side effect, developed a burning in my mouth, vinegar, wine spicy or warm items create a burning sensation. Anyone know how long this last"

7 / 10
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  • Gladys
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • July 21, 2024

"A leg wound got infected. The first antibiotic was not effective, and the doctor then prescribed Bactrim. I took 2 tablets, one in the morning and 1 in the evening for seven days. Within 2 days, I noticed an improvement, and by day 7, I felt so much better. I took the tablet with food and had zero digestive discomfort. Very grateful."

9 / 10
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Reviews may be edited to correct grammar/spelling or to remove inappropriate language and content. Reviews that appear to be created by parties with a vested interest are not published. This information is not intended to endorse any particular medication. While these reviews may be helpful, they are not a substitute for the expertise, knowledge, and judgement of healthcare professionals.