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Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) and toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), characterized by cutaneous eruptions and epidermal loss, are serious abnormal responses to drug therapy. About 30% of patients with TEN die, usually from infection or pulmonary complications. It is believed that stopping the causative drug as soon as possible can reduce the risk of death, but this has not been studied rigorously.
These authors conducted a retrospective chart review of 203 patients with SJS or TEN that did not result from graft-versus-host disease. The authors' goal was to evaluate the relation between withdrawal of the drug and risk of death. Complete data were available for 113 patients (74 with TEN), 20 of whom died. Early withdrawal was defined as stoppi…