Case Report

Four Cases of Anticonvulsant Hypersensitivity Syndrome

  • Eylem SAHIN
  • Göksun KARAMAN
  • Neslihan SENDUR
  • Ekin SAVK

Received Date: 17.03.2006 Accepted Date: 26.06.2006 Meandros Med Dent J 2006;7(1):39-42

Anticonvulsant hypersensitivity syndrome (AHS) that occurs with aromatic antiepileptic drugs such as phenytoin, carbamazepine, phenobarbital and primidone is an acute, life threatening multisystemic drug reaction. Most important clinical signs are fever, skin eruptions ranging from mild morbiliform eruption to Stevens- Johnson syndrome and lymphadenopathy. Beside hematological abnormalities such as eosinophilia, mononucleosis like atypic lymphocytosis, internal organ involvements including hepatitis, nephritis and pneumonia can be seen. Morbiliform maculopapular eruption is the most frequent skin sign. In this article we aimed to present 4 patients with AHS and emphasize the characteristic clinical features of this syndrome. In our series 4 male patients with AHS, between ages 17 and 64, had been treated with anticonvulsant drugs after epilepsy, psychiatric disease, trigeminal neuralgia and operation of a subdural hematoma. The causative agents were carbamazepine in 2 patients, diphenylhidantoin and oxcarbazepine in the others. Erythroderma in 3 patients and Stevens-Johnson syndrome in the 4th patient had developed after 1-1,5 months following initiation or alteration of anticonvulsant therapy. Fever, was observed in 4 patients, lymphadenopathy in 2 patients and hepatosplenomegaly in one patient. Laboratory evaluation showed leucocytosis in 3, increase in erythrocyte sedimentation rate in 3, elevated blood urea nitrogen and creatinin levels in 1 and elevated liver enzymes in all patients. Except one case with erythroderma, all cases improved within 1-5 months.

Keywords: anticonvulsants, carbamazepine, diphenylhidantoin, oxcarbazepine, erythroderma, Stevens-Johnson syndrome