Protective effect of N-acetylcysteine on antituberculosis drug-induced hepatotoxicity

Abstract

Introduction: The first-line antituberculosis (anti-TB) drugs associated with hepatotoxicity were documented in the pharmacokinetics and clinical practice. There are few ways to prevent the hepatotoxicity. Our aim is to study the hepatoprotective effect of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on liver injury induced by anti-TB drugs. Methods: A case-control study was conducted in the territory medical center and 379 TB patients with complete anti-TB drugs courses were recruited. 82 patients were prescribed NAC with 1200mg/day simultaneously (NAC group, NAC) and other 297 were not (placebo group, PL). The duration for anti-TB drugs treatment was at least 6 months. Liver enzymes and bilirubin levels were measured every 2 months, and whenever the patients presented with clinical symptoms of hepatotoxicity. Results: There were no significant difference including age, sex, the duration and types of anti-TB drugs between the two groups. During the anti-TB drugs treatment period, 11 patients (13.4%) were diagnosed as having DIH in NAC group and 72 patients (24.2%) developed DIH in PL group (p Conclusion: NAC protects against anti-TB drug-induced hepatotoxicity.