[DRESS syndrome in paediatrics: Clinical case]

Drugs and the skin: A concise review of cutaneous adverse drug reactions

Drug-induced skin disease or cutaneous adverse drug reactions (CADRs) are terms that encompass the clinical manifestations of the skin, mucosae and adnexa induced by a drug or its metabolites. The skin is the organ most frequently affected by drug reactions, which may affect up to 10% of hospitalized patients and occur in 1-3% of multimedicated patients. Most CADRs are mild or self-resolving conditions; however, 2-6.7% of could develop into potentially life-threatening conditions. CADRs represent a heterogeneous field and can be diagnostically challenging as they may potentially mimic any dermatosis. Currently, there are between 29-35 different cutaneous drug-reaction patterns reported ranging from mild dermatitis to an extensively burnt patient. The most frequently reported are maculopapular rash, urticaria/angioedema, fixed drug eruption and erythema multiforme. Less common but more severe patterns include erythroderma, drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms, and Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis spectrum. Almost any drug can induce a CADR, but antibiotics, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and antiepileptics are the most frequently involved. Different mechanisms are involved in the pathogenesis of CADRs, although in some cases, these remain still unknown. CADRs could be classified in different ways: (i) type A (augmented) or type B (bizarre); (ii) immediate or delayed; (iii) immune-mediated or nonimmune-mediated; (iv) nonsevere or life-threatening; and (v) by their phenotype, including exanthematous, urticarial, pustular and blistering morphology. Recognizing a specific CADR will mostly depend on the ability of the physician to perform a detailed clinical examination, the proper description of the morphology of the skin lesions and supporting laboratory and/or skin biopsy findings.

Drug reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms (DRESS): A Tertiary Care Center Retrospective Study

BACKGROUND

Drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS) is a rare, drug-induced severe adverse reaction that usually occurs 3-6 weeks after initial exposure to certain drugs. It affects mainly adults and children to a lesser extent. Clinical features include fever, facial edema, generalized skin rash, lymphadenopathy, hematologic abnormalities, and internal organ involvement.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the clinical and laboratory features of patients with DRESS in our center.

METHODS

We retrospectively describe and analyze 19 cases of DRESS whose diagnosis was based on the RegiSCAR criteria (≥ 6 points) that occurred from January 2009 to December 2019.

RESULTS

Patients ages ranged from 4-76 years(4 children/15 adults); 10 were female (52.3%). The most common culprit drugs were antibiotics (74%) and anticonvulsants (21%). The most common comorbidities were epilepsy (26%) and hypertension (26%). All patients developed cutaneous manifestations and of those, 58% presented facial edema. LFTs, urea/creatinine and troponin elevation were present in 74%, 32% and 42%, respectively. The median time to develop the skin rash after the drug exposure was 3.7 weeks (IQR2.4-4.2 weeks). Eosinophilia (≥ 0.7 x 10^9/L) was present in 95% of the patients and peaked around 10 days after the skin manifestations. Leukocytosis and reactive lymphocytes were reported in 84% and 26% of all patients respectively. Treatment with systemic steroids was reported in 16 patients. The mean recovery time was 2 weeks (IQR 2-3.5 weeks) and mortality was 5%.

CONCLUSIONS

DRESS is a serious condition with significant morbidity and mortality, which requires more research for a better understanding.

Antibacterial antibiotic-induced drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS) syndrome: a literature review

Background

Drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms syndrome (DRESS) is a delayed infrequent potentially life-threatening idiosyncratic drug reaction. Aromatic anticonvulsants and allopurinol are the most frequent causative agents. However, various reports of antibiotic-induced DRESS are available. In this review, we try to summarize reports of antibacterial antibiotic-induced DRESS focusing on characteristics of DRESS induced by each antibiotic group.

Methods

The data were collected by searching PubMed/MEDLINE and ScienceDirect. The keywords used as search terms were “DRESS syndrome,” “drug-induced hypersensitivity syndrome (DIHS),” “antibiotics,” “antimicrobial,” and names of various antimicrobial groups. Finally, 254 relevant cases with a definite or probable diagnosis of DRESS based on RegiSCAR criteria were found until 30 May 2020 and reviewed.

Results and conclusion

Totally, 254 cases of antibacterial antibiotic-induced DRESS are reported. Most of them are related to antituberculosis drugs, vancomycin, and sulfonamides, respectively. Rash and fever were most frequent clinical findings. Eosinophilia and liver injury were the most reported hematologic and visceral organ involvement, respectively. Most of the patients are managed with systemic corticosteroids. The death occurred in 16 patients which most of them experienced liver or lung involvement. The reactivation of various viruses especially HHV-6 is reported in 33 cases. The mean latency period was 29 days. It is necessary to perform thorough epidemiological, genetic, and immunological studies, also systematic case review and causality assessment, as well as well-designed clinical trials for better management of antibiotic-induced DRESS.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1007/s00228-020-03005-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS) in children

Drug Reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms (DRESS) is a severe reaction to drugs. Incidence of DRESS in children is not well known and the mortality rate seems to be lower than 10%. Anticonvulsants are the main drugs involved both in adults and in children. The treatment of choice is intravenous immunoglobulins and corticosteroids used in synergy. Today there are not controlled clinical trials regarding DRESS treatment in children. Anyway, the prompt withdrawn of the offending drug is of paramount importance for a better prognosis. DRESS sequels may occur, consequently, follow-up visits are required at least until the first year after the reaction. (www.actabiomedica.it)