Furazolidone is a kind of nitrofuran-class antibacterial agents which has certain antibacterial effects on gram positive and negative bacteria including Salmonella, Shigella, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae Peter, Enterobacter spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus pyogenes, Vibrio cholerae, Campylobacter, Bacteroides spp. It also has antibacterial activities against Trichomonas, Giardia lamblia at certain concentration. Its mechanism of action is by interfering with the bacterial oxidoreductase and thereby blocking the normal metabolism of bacteria. It is mainly used for treatment of various intestinal infections, dysentery, diarrhea, enteritis, Escherichia coli septicemia, typhoid, cholera, infectious rhinitis, blackhead, trichomoniasis, coccidiosis and Cartesian WBC. It can also be combined together with other drugs such as antacids for treatment of Helicobacter pylori-induced inflammation.
Furazolidone has side effects on infants, such as liver and kidney damage, allergic reactions, etc., Thereby, it is generally recommended to minimize the use or avoid using on infants.