Neutropenia induced by high-dose intravenous benzylpenicillin in treating neurosyphilis: Does it really matter?

BACKGROUND: Prompt therapy with high-dose intravenous benzylpenicillin for a prolonged period is critical for neurosyphilis patients to avoid irreversible sequelae. However, life-threatening neutropenia has been reported as a complication of prolonged therapy with high doses of benzylpenicillin when treating other diseases. This study aimed to investigate the incidence, presentation, management and prognosis of benzylpenicillin-induced neutropenia in treating neurosyphilis based on a large sample of syphilis patients in Shanghai. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Between 1st January 2013 and 31st December 2015, 1367 patients with neurosyphilis were treated with benzylpenicillin, 578 of whom were eligible for recruitment to this study. Among patients without medical co-morbidities, the total incidence of benzylpenicillin-induced neutropenia and severe neutropenia was 2.42% (95% CI: 1.38-4.13%) and 0.35% (95% CI: 0.06-1.39%), respectively. The treatment duration before onset of neutropenia ranged from 10 to 14 days, with a total cumulative dose of between 240 and 324 megaunits of benzylpenicillin. Neutropenia was accompanied by symptoms of chills and fever (5 patients), fatigue (2 patients), cough (1 patient), sore throat (1 patient), diarrhea (1 patient) and erythematous rash (1 patient). The severity of neutropenia was not associated with age, gender or type of neurosyphilis (p>0.05). Neutropenia, even when severe, was often tolerated and normalized within one week. A more serious neutropenia did not occur when reinstituting benzylpenicillin in patients with mild or moderate neutropenia nor when ceftriaxone was used three months after patients had previously experienced severe neutropenia. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Benzylpenicillin-induced neutropenia was uncommon in our cohort of patients. Continuation of therapy was possible with intensive surveillance for those with mild or moderate neutropenia. For severe neutropenia, it is not essential to aggressively use hematopoietic growth factors or broad-spectrum antibiotics for patients in good physical condition after withdrawing anti-neurosyphilis regimen. We did not see an exacerbation of neutropenia in patients with the readministration of benzylpenicillin.

The Palm-Sized Cryoprobe System Based on Refrigerant Expansion and Boiling and Its Application to an Animal Model of Epilepsy.

GOAL: The purpose of this study is to propose the palm-sized cryoprobe system based on a new concept and to suggest that the freezing technique could be used for treatment of epilepsy. METHODS: We propose herein a cryoprobe system based on the boiling effect that uses a specific refrigerants with a boiling point higher than that of liquid nitrogen yet low enough to result in cell necrosis. To evaluate and verify the effectiveness of the proposed system, cooling characteristics are investigated in agar. In addition, the system is applied to a Wistar rat brain-model, in which the epileptic activities are induced in advance by a potent epileptogenic substance. RESULTS: The design concept yielded the following benefits: 1) the selected refrigerant promotes sealing in the tank; 2) the tank can be made as compact as possible, limited only by the volume required for the refrigerant; 3) because the tank and probe units can be separated by a nonconducting, flexible, and high-pressure tube, the tank unit can be manipulated without disturbing the probe tip with mechanical vibrations and electrical noise. Although the agar experiments, we verified that the proposed system can uniquely and reproducibly create an ice ball. Moreover, in the rat experiments in vivo, it was confirmed that penicillin G-induced epileptic activities disappeared on freezing with the proposed system. CONCLUSIONS: The palm-sized system has desired characteristics and can apply for an animal model of epilepsy. SIGNIFICANCE: Results of in vivo experiments suggest that cryosurgery may be an effective treatment for epilepsy.

Penicillin skin testing in cardiac surgery.

BACKGROUND: Penicillin is the most commonly reported allergy in cardiac surgical patients and a history of penicillin allergy frequently results in the use of vancomycin for antibiotic prophylaxis. However, clinical history is unreliable and true allergy is rare. Penicillin allergy testing has the potential to reduce vancomycin use and indirectly the potential for selection of vancomycin-resistant organisms, a national priority. METHODS: After the publication of the 2007 Society of Thoracic Surgeons practice guideline report, we initiated a penicillin allergy testing service for cardiac surgical patients in 2009. We sought to determine the true incidence of penicillin allergy in the tested population, whether testing availability reduced vancomycin use in those tested, and if vancomycin use was reduced in the entire cardiac surgical population as a whole. RESULTS: A total of 276 patients were skin tested for allergy to penicillin or cephalosporin. Testing recommended no penicillin use in 13.8% of those tested giving a true penicillin allergy incidence of 0.9%. Only 24 of the 276 patients tested (9%) received vancomycin. However, given the small percentage of the total population that underwent allergy testing, the overall use of vancomycin in the cardiac surgery practice was not reduced in the posttesting period. CONCLUSIONS: The true rate of contraindication to penicillin in a cardiac surgical population is very low. Penicillin allergy testing can reduce vancomycin use in the tested population, but better means of conducting the testing and making the results available are necessary to reduce unnecessary vancomycin use in a broader cardiac surgical population.

Parecer técnico da ASBAI sobre o uso da penicilina G em unidades básicas de saúde / The ASBAI technical report on the use of penicillin G at primary care health clinics

Este artigo é resultado de um Parecer Técnico solicitado pelo Ministério da Saúde (MS) sobre o posicionamento da ASBAI quanto à Portaria n° 3161, de 27/12/2011 que “Dispõe sobre a administração da Penicilina nas unidades de atenção básica à saúde (UBS), no âmbito do Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS)”. A Portaria anterior, n° 156 de 19/01/2006 do MS, enfatiza a importância da sífilis congênita, que ainda hoje constitui grave problema de saúde pública. Nesta Portaria, recomenda-se que toda UBS deve contar com os seguintes materiais para atendimento à anafilaxia: máscara e cilindro para administração de oxigênio; epinefrina; prometazina; fenoterol; cloreto de sódio 0,9%, entre outros. Em 2011, a Portaria n° 156/2006 foi revogada pelo MS, que publicou a Portaria n° 3161, de 27/12/2011. Nesta nova Portaria não são mencionados os materiais e medicamentos que constavam na Portaria n° 156/2006. De todo modo, determina que a penicilina seja administrada em todas as UBS do SUS, pela equipe de enfermagem, médicos e farmacêuticos e que em caso de reações anafiláticas, deve-se proceder de acordo com os protocolos que abordam a atenção às urgências no âmbito da Atenção Básica à Saúde. O Grupo de Assessoria da ASBAI em Alergia a Medicamentos sugere que todas as UBS do SUS disponham de pessoal capacitado para o diagnóstico e tratamento de reações alérgicas. No caso de uma reação grave, como uma anafilaxia, o diagnóstico deve ser feito na UBS e, após as medidas iniciais, o paciente deve ser encaminhado para um serviço de referência...

The present article is the result of a technical report requested by the Brazilian Ministry of Health regarding ASBAI’s position regarding Ordinance no. 3161, issued December 27, 2011,which regulates the administration of penicillin at primary health care clinics of the Brazilian Unified Health System. Previous Ordinance no. 156, issued January 19, 2006, highlighted the importance of congenital syphilis, which continues to be a serious public health problem. That Ordinance recommended that all health centers should have the following materials available for the management of anaphylaxis: face mask and oxygen cylinder; epinephrine; promethazine; fenoterol; 0.9% sodium chloride; among other materials. In 2011, Ordinance no. 156/2006 was replaced with Ordinance no. 3161/2011. This new Ordinance does not mention the materials and drugs previously included in Ordinance no. 156/2006. Conversely, it determines that penicillin should be administered at all public health clinics by nurses, doctors, and pharmacists, and that anaphylactic reactions be dealt with according to emergency protocols applicable to the primary health care setting. The Advisory Group for Drug Allergies at ASBAI recommends that all primary care heath clinics have staff trained in the diagnosis and treatment of allergic reactions. In the case of a severe reaction, such as anaphylaxis, diagnosis should be made at the health clinic, and the patient should be referred to a tertiary care center once the initial measures have been carried out...

Baboon syndrome: an unusual complication arising from antibiotic treatment of tonsillitis and review of the literature.

A 40-year-old man presented with sore throat and fevers associated with bilaterally enlarged and inflamed tonsils. A clinical diagnosis of tonsillitis was made and the patient received intravenous benzylpenicillin. Over subsequent days, the patient developed a macular rash over both groins, buttocks and axillae, with necrotic patches in the groins. An assumptive diagnosis of necrotising fasciitis was made. The patient underwent urgent groin biopsy and was started on broad spectrum antibiotics. No organisms were seen on Gram stain. Following a multidisciplinary discussion, the patient was diagnosed with baboon syndrome (symmetrical drug-related intertriginous and flexural exanthema). He was treated with oral steroid along with topical agents. Baboon syndrome can develop following penicillin administration. Given the widespread use of penicillin antibiotics to treat tonsillitis and many other conditions, it is important that medical staff recognise the side effects of these medications.

Síndrome de Nicolau posterior a la inyección de penicilina intramuscular / Nicolau's syndrome after benzathine penicillin intramuscular injection

El síndrome de Nicolau se produce por la inyección intra-arterial accidental de sustancias de aplicación intramuscular. Se caracteriza por dolor inmediato en el sitio de la inyección, seguido de alteraciones cutáneas locales y posterior desarrollo de embolias en las extremidades que generan daño isquémico tisular pudiendo llevar a la necrosis. En general se ha adjudicado a la penicilina G benzatínica intrmuscular, aún con técnica de aplicación adecuada, como responsable de este síndrome. Este fármaco sigue siendo de elección en una gran cantidad de enfermedades infecciosas; dentro de sus efectos advesos no alérgicos se destacan las complicaciones vasculares como las más frecuentes. Reportamos un paciente con sífilis tratado con penicilina G benzatínica intramuscular que presentó efectos adversos neurovasculares.

Nicolau's syndrome occurs as a result of intra-arterial accidental injection of intramuscular drugs. The clinical presentation includes immediate pain followed by skin local changes and extremities embolism that may lead to necrosis. Intramuscular Benzathine penicillin has been associated with this syndrome, even with adequate injection technique. This drug is of choice for a wide variety of infectious diseases; the most common non-allergic adverse events are vascular. We report here a syphilitic patient who suffered neurovascular adverse effects after intramuscular penicillin G benzathine application.

Evaluation of the sensitizing potential of antibiotics in vitro using the human cell lines THP-1 and MUTZ-LC and primary monocyte-derived dendritic cells.

Since the 7th amendment to the EU cosmetics directive foresees a complete ban on animal testing, alternative in vitro methods have been established to evaluate the sensitizing potential of small molecular weight compounds. To find out whether these novel in vitro assays are also capable to predict the sensitizing potential of small molecular weight drugs, model compounds such as beta-lactams and sulfonamides - which are the most frequent cause of adverse drug reactions - were co-incubated with THP-1, MUTZ-LC, or primary monocyte-derived dendritic cells for 48 h and subsequent expression of selected marker genes (IL-8, IL-1ß, CES1, NQO1, GCLM, PIR and TRIM16) was studied by real time PCR. Benzylpenicillin and phenoxymethylpenicillin were recognized as sensitizing compounds because they are capable to induce the mRNA expression of these genes in moDCs and, except for IL-8, in THP-1 cells but not in MUTZ-LC. Ampicillin stimulated the expression of some marker genes in moDCs and THP-1 cells. SMX did not affect the expression of these genes in THP-1, however, in moDCs, at least PIR was enhanced and there was an increase of the release of IL-8. These data reveal that novel in vitro DC based assays might play a role in the evaluation of the allergenic potential of novel drug compounds, but these systems seem to lack the ability to detect the sensitizing potential of prohaptens that require metabolic activation prior to sensitization and moDCs seem to be superior with regard to the sensitivity compared with THP-1 and MUTZ-3 cell lines.

Evaluation of penicillin G potassium troches in the treatment of minor recurrent aphthous ulceration in a Chinese cohort: a randomized, double-blinded, placebo and no-treatment-controlled, multicenter clinical trial.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to explore the effectiveness and safety of topical application of 50 mg penicillin G potassium troches in the treatment of minor recurrent aphthous ulcerations (MiRAU) in a Chinese cohort. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A randomized, double-blinded, placebo and no-treatment-controlled, multicenter clinical trial was performed. Troches were consecutively applied 4 times per day for 4 days. The size and pain level of ulcers were measured and recorded on days 0, 3, 4, 5, and 6. RESULTS: A total of 258 subjects with minor recurrent aphthous ulcerations (86 subjects in penicillin G potassium group, 88 subjects in placebo control group, and 84 subjects in no-treatment control group) fulfilled the study. Penicillin G potassium significantly reduced ulcer size (P < .00001 for days 3, 4, 5, and 6) and alleviated ulcer pain (P < .00001 for days 3, 4, 5, and 6). No severe adverse reactions were observed. Only 4 subjects experienced mild adverse reaction. CONCLUSIONS: Penicillin G potassium troches are effective in reducing ulcer size and alleviating ulcer pain of the patients in the treatment of a single episode of MiRAU in this Chinese cohort. Few adverse effects were observed with this therapeutic approach.

Penicillin G-induced hemorrhagic cystitis with hydronephrosis.

Irritable urological symptoms with gross hematuria and bilateral lumbar pain developed when the patient received penicillin G for endocarditis. These symptoms were followed by renal insufficiency. A contrast-enhanced abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan revealed a thickened bladder wall, bilateral hydroureter and hydronephrosis, suggesting hemorrhagic cystitis complicated with urinary tract obstruction. Urine culture was negative. After discontinuation of penicillin G, all symptoms subsided and renal function recovered; hence, penicillin G seems to have been associated with hemorrhagic cystitis and acute kidney injury. Positive findings in the drug lymphocyte stimulation test (DLST) for penicillin G were consistent with this diagnosis.

Preoperative evaluation of patients with history of allergy to penicillin: comparison of 2 models of practice.

OBJECTIVE: To study whether allergy consultation and penicillin allergy skin testing affects the selection of antibacterial prophylaxis perioperatively in surgical patients with history of allergy to penicillin (HOAP). PATIENTS AND METHODS: From January 1 through June 30, 2004, we compared 2 different models of practice at our institution. At the Preoperative Evaluation Clinic (POEC), all patients with HOAP are evaluated by an allergist and undergo skin testing for allergy to penicillin. At other (non-POEC) preoperative evaluation settings (OPES), patients with HOAP do not undergo allergy consultation and penicillin skin testing before surgery. Of the 4889 patients screened at the POEC during the study period, 412 consecutive patients with HOAP were included in the study. Of the 416 patients screened at OPES, 69 consecutive patients with HOAP were studied. Logistic regression was used to assess whether allergy consultation was associated with the choice of antibiotic for antibacterial prophylaxis perioperatively, after adjusting for age, sex, and type of surgery. RESULTS: Perioperative cephalosporin use was greater among patients screened at POEC vs those screened at OPES (70% vs 39%, P<.001 unadjusted; P=.04 adjusted for age, sex, and type of surgery). Vancomycin use was lower for patients screened at POEC vs those screened at OPES (10% vs 28%, P<.001 unadjusted; P=.03 adjusted). CONCLUSION: For patients with HOAP, evaluation at the POEC was associated with increased use of cephalosporin and decreased use of vancomycin.

Involvement of drug-specific T cells in acute drug-induced interstitial nephritis.

Drug-induced interstitial nephritis can be caused by a plethora of drugs and is characterized by a sudden impairment of renal function, mild proteinuria, and sterile pyuria. For investigation of the possible pathomechanism of this disease, drug-specific T cells were analyzed, their function was characterized, and these in vitro findings were correlated to histopathologic changes that were observed in kidney biopsy specimens. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from three patients showed a proliferative response to only one of the administered drugs, namely flucloxacillin, penicillin G, and disulfiram, respectively. The in vitro analysis of the flucloxacillin-reactive cells showed an oligoclonal immune response with an outgrowth of T cells bearing the T cell receptor Vbeta9 and Vbeta21.3. Moreover, flucloxacillin-specific T cell clones could be generated from peripheral blood, they expressed CD4 and the alphabeta-T cell receptor, and showed a heterogeneous cytokine secretion pattern with no clear commitment to either a Th1- or Th2-type response. The immunohistochemistry of kidney biopsies of these patients revealed cell infiltrations that consisted mostly of T cells (CD4+ and/or CD8+). An augmented presence of IL-5, eosinophils, neutrophils, CD68+ cells, and IL-12 was observed. In agreement with negative cytotoxicity assays, no cytotoxicity-related molecules such as Fas and perforin were detected by immunohistochemistry. The data indicate that drug-specific T cells are activated locally and orchestrate a local inflammation via secretion of various cytokines, the type of which depends on the cytokine pattern secreted and which probably is responsible for the renal damage.

[A 34-year-old man with hemorrhagic cystitis]. / En 34 år gammel mann med hemoragisk cystitt.

BACKGROUND: A 34-year-old male presented with macroscopic haematuria, abdominal pain and dysuria while being treated with penicillin for bacterial endocarditis. All blood cultures yielded Streptococcus mutans. After four weeks of treatment he developed haemorrhagic cystitis, thrombophlebitis and eosinophilia. The symptoms disappeared when he was taken off penicillin. After change of medication to ceftriaxone, the patient developed reversible neutropenia and recovered completely. INTERPRETATION: Haemorrhagic cystitis caused by penicillin can be potentially fatal; two cases have earlier been described. Because of cross reaction this patient also developed reversible neutropenia. It is well known that beta-lactam antibiotics can induce severe neutropenia.

Reações adversas não-alérgicas à suspensão injetável de benzilpenicilina benzatina: uma revisão sistemática / A systematic review of the non-allergic adverse reactions following benzylpenicillin benzathine injection

A benzilpenicilina benzatina é essencial para o tratamento de doenças infecciosas e para a prevenção de doenças cardiovasculares. Entretanto, a gravidade das reações locais, tais como necrose e abcesso,foi pouco estudada. Efetuou-se revisão sistemática da literatura sobre as reações adversas não-alérgicas provocadas pela suspensão injetável de benzilpenicilina benzatina. Pesquisou-se o banco de dados MEDLINE, no período de 1966 a 2001, com as seguintes palavras-chaves: penicillin G benzathine e benzylpenicillin benzathine. Como fontes complementares foram feitos contatos com os fabricantes da suspensão injetável de benzilpenicilina benzatina e com as agências reguladoras internacionais na área de medicamentos. A pesquisa incluiu todos os tipos de desenho epidemiológico, artigos de revisão,comentários e cartas. Foi feita uma padronização da extração dos dados por meio de instrumento de avaliação qualitativa, elaborado para este estudo e validado por sete especialistas. Foram identificados 1.400 artigos publicados, desses, 140 foram selecionados, após aplicados os critérios de inclusão. Os referentes a relato de casos e série ,de casos (n = 41) foram submetidos a abordagem metodológica da revisão sistemática, identificando-se 72 casos de reações adversas não-alérgicas. Os sinais e sintomas mais freqüentes foram as alterações vasculares (42,1 por cento)) e as alterações neurológicas (29,1 por cento). As causas mais citadas para o surgimento das reações adversas não-alérgicas foram injeção acidental intra-arterial (50,6 por cento) e inadequação do produto (31,6 por cento).Não foram localizados ensaios clínicos sobre reações adversas. É necessária a realização de estudos epidemiológicos para avaliar a ocorrência de reações adversas não-alérgicas após o uso da suspensão injetável de benzilpenicilina benzatina, sua etiopatogenia, e sua relação com as características físicas, químicas, físico-químicas e biológicas do produto e as técnicas de aplicação.

Clinical usefulness of patch and challenge tests in the diagnosis of cell-mediated allergy to betalactams.

BACKGROUND: Literature reports dealing with cell-mediated allergy to betalactams have appeared with increasing frequency in the last years. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate patients with such reactions and to identify cross-reactivities among betalactams in order to provide safe guidelines for their further clinical management. METHODS: Thirty consecutive subjects with cell-mediated allergy to betalactams (history of adverse reactions to these antibiotics; serum total IgE within the normal range; absence of serum specific IgE antibodies to penicillin G and V, amoxicillin, and ampicillin; negative skin tests with a wide pattern of betalactam preparations; and positive patch-test to at least one betalactam antigenic determinant) were investigated. The subjects admitted to the study were patch tested with a wide variety of betalactam preparations in order to identify alternative molecules tolerated by the patient. To better evaluate the cross-reactivity pattern, tolerance challenges with patch-negative betalactams were also performed in each subject. RESULTS: Both specific IgE and skin tests were negative in all patients. The skin biopsies performed on the positive patch-tested area in four patients showed a clear T-lymphocyte, CD4+-type infiltrate, thus definitely proving the occurrence of a cell-mediated response. A total of 44 adverse reactions (mean: 1.47 episodes for each patient) were reported in history, with a mean interval of 15 hours after betalactam administration. The reported symptoms were mainly cutaneous (maculo-papular rash and urticaria) and the responsible drugs were chiefly aminopenicillins (86.4% of cases) and penicillin G (9.1%). We were able to identify three separate groups of patients on the basis of clinical history, patch-test, and tolerance challenge pattern: allergy to the side chain of aminopenicillins in 16 patients (53.3%); allergy to the thiazolidine ring in 3 patients (10.0%); undetermined specificity in the remainder 11 patients (36.7%). Cross-reactivity among different betalactam molecules (revealed by positive tolerance tests performed with patch-negative betalactams) was found in 4.8% of cases only (23.3% of all investigated patients). This fact demonstrates a very high (95.2%) predictive value of a negative patch-test in excluding the occurrence of a cross-reactivity. The mis-match between patch and tolerance tests was observed in 3 out of 178 cases only (1.7% of cases, 10.5% of patients) in groups A and B, and in as much as 12.2% of cases (45.5% of subjects) in group C (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Delayed allergy to betalactams (mainly to aminopenicillins) may be exerted by a cell-mediated response. Patch tests and tolerance challenges are extremely useful and safe for diagnosis and further clinical treatment of these patients, helping to identify safe alternative betalactam molecules that could be successfully tolerated by the allergic subjects.

Importancia del núcleo bencilpenicilina y las cadenas laterales de los beta-lactámicos: demostración por pruebas cutáneas y RAST en pacientes alérgicos a penicilina / Importance of the benzylpenicillin nucleus and the side chain of the beta-lactams: demonstration by skin tests and RAST in penicillin allergic patients

Se estudiaron 30 pacientes con reacciones alérgicas a Beta - Lactámicos claramente demostrados por las manifestaciones clínicas. El objetivo de este trabajo fue determinar la importancia del núcleo Beta - Lactámico y las cadenas laterales en la inducción de IgE específica para BPO, Ax y AMP por medio de las pruebas cutáneas y el RAST para estos determinantes. Este grupo se dividió previamente por historia clínica en: 1 - Acelerados (n:19); 2-Inmediatos (n:11). Las pruebas del Prick se realizaron con BPO-PL, Ax-PL, Amp-PL, MDM de BP, MDM de Ax y MDM de Amp. Presentando en el grupo acelerado: 2 (+) a BPO, 4(+) Ax/AMP, 13(+) a todos los reactivos (BPO-Ax - Amp - MDM BP/Ax/Amp). Los pacientes con reacción inmediata: 10 casos (+) a MDM-BP y 1 (+) MDM-Amp. Estos pacientes fueron estudiados con la técnica del RAST para BPO - PL, Ax-PL, Amp PL y PL. Se consideró como línea de corte positiva al nivel = a 1524 cpm, tomado de la curva estandar de Pharmacia. Los pacientes con reacción acelerada presentaron en 13/19 casos RAST (+) a BPO-PL, 1/19 (+) BPO- Ax/PL, 3/19(+) Ax-PL, 1/19(+) Am/PL y 1 negativo para todos los reactivos estudiados. Los pacientes con reación inmediata (n:11) en todos los casos fueron negativos para todos los reactivos estudiados. El grupo control (n:20) presentó en 1/20 casos positividad por Prick a Ax-PL y 19 casos negatividad total a todos los reactivos. Los RAST a todos los reactivos fueron negativos en todos los individuos estudiados. Estos resultados indican que la bensilpenicilina (BPO) es el más importante determinante y las cadenas laterales (Ax y Amp) son otros determinantes antigénicos en los Beta-Lactámicos, siendo cada uno de ellos inductores de un tipo de IgE específica y que raramente aparece una respuesta IgE a dos determinantes diferentes en un mismo sujeto. Las pruebas cutáneas son el método de elección para el estudio de alergia a penicilina ya que con el método in vitro se cubre un espectro menor de reactivos que los que producen reacción acelerada (MDM).

Pruebas cutáneas confiables para el diagnóstico de hipersensibilidad a la penicilina / Reliable skin testing for penicilina allergy diagnosis

Al indicarse un tratamiento con penicilina siempre existe la posibilidad de hipersensibilidad al medicamento. Nuestro objetivo fue comparar las pruebas cutáneas realizadas sin los recaudos metodológicos adecuados que resultaron positivas en pacientes menores de 21 años, con pruebas hechas en los mismos pacientes bajo condiciones técnicas ideales. Se estudiaron 33 pacientes (promedio 16 años; rango 5-20) con testificaciones cutáneas positivas realizadas en centros no especializados (farmacias, guardias, etc) en un lapso menor de 6 meses. Pacientes con antecedentes de alergia a penicilina: ninguno; a derivados penicilínicos: 1; otro síndrome alérgico: 8. A los 33 pacientes se les practicó una testificación por inyección intradérmica de 0,02 ml en la cara anterior del antebrazo de: 1) Solución fisiológica; 2) Penicilina G sódica (10.000 Ul/ml); 3) Mezcla de determinantes menores (MDM). Se consideraron positivas pruebas con pápula mayor de 3 mm en relación al control acompañado de eritema y prurito. Positividad: ninguno a Penicilina G sódica; 3 a MDM (9,09 por ciento) que fueron referidos a sus médicos para el reemplazo farmacológico. Los pacientes con pruebas negativas recibieron la penicilina y ninguno evidenció hipersensibilidad. Conclusiones: Se destaca la ausencia de antecedentes clínicos de alergia a penicilina. Los 3 casos positivos podían ser debidos a sensibilidad encubierta. Los resultados confirman la importancia de la inclusión de MDM en las pruebas. Es fundamental diagnosticar correctamente la alergia a penicilina por su importancia en el tratamiento de distintas enfermedades. La testificación debe ser el complemento del interrogatorio y debe ser completa, realizada bajo condiciones técnicas adecuadas e interpretadas por profesionales entrenados

[Antibiotic-induced hemorrhagic cystitis]. / Antibiotikaudløst haemoragisk cystitis.

Two cases of haemorrhagic cystitis following treatment with methicillin and penicillin G are presented. Two males, aged 24 and 45 years, presented identical symptoms including haematuria, dysuria and pollakisuria. The condition has in rare instances been described as caused by antibiotic treatment; in all cases a penicillin was involved. All symptoms promptly vanished when the antibiotic treatment was stopped, and the reactions were possibly allergic since cross-reactions between different penicillins have been described in earlier cases.