Amoxicillin induced toxic epidermal necrolysis: a case report

Abstract

Adverse reactions are the recognized hazards of drug therapy and they can occur with any class of drugs and many studies revealed that the incidence is more in case of antibiotics. Amoxicillin is a broad spectrum, bactericidal, beta lactam antibiotic, commonly used to combat various infections. Penicillin group of drugs are known to cause cutaneous drug eruptions especially in paediatric population. Most of the time, these eruptions are mild in nature, however, sometimes they represent the early manifestation of rare, severe drug-induced cutaneous reactions, such as Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) and toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN). Toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) is a rare, life threatening dermatological disorder that is usually induced by medications. Seventy percent of the cases of TEN are drug induced, most commonly implicated drugs being anticonvulsants, antibiotics and non-steroidalanti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). Here, we report a case of toxic epidermal necrolysis induced by amoxicillin in a 12 year old male patient. Treatment with strong antibiotics, immunosuppressant and other supportive measures helped in recovery of the patient. The case is being reported to emphasize the need for efficient pharmacovigilance in order to motivate adverse drug reaction reporting so as to gather more and more data regarding adverse drug reactions. Through this report, we also seek the support of every-one concerned, to detect and, if possible, prevent adverse reactions to drugs.