Overview Of Possible Causes And Risk Factors For Stevens-Johnson Syndrome

Stevens-Johnson syndrome may cause a painful rash with blisters. This rash seems to affect most of the patient's body. Other possible symptoms may include a sore throat, cough, red eyes, and severe itching. They appear to deal with a sensitivity to light and flu-like symptoms too. Doctors may need a skin biopsy and a history of the patient's medication use to diagnose this condition.

If patients are in pain, they may want to try cool compresses for blisters. Some patients seem to benefit from antibiotics for Stevens-Johnson syndrome. However, when medications for Stevens-Johnson syndrome are used, they may need to be chosen with care and taken sparingly. Patients seem to be unable to take any nonessential medications. Stevens-Johnson syndrome treatment may be affected by what caused it for each patient. Thus, doctors may want patients to understand the possible risk factors first.

Pneumonia

Pneumonia seems to be the most common infectious cause of Stevens-Johnson syndrome. The type of pneumonia that may trigger this condition the most appears to be the one caused by the M. pneumoniae bacteria. Individuals who have Stevens-Johnson syndrome due to pneumonia may need intensive treatment. This may be due to the fact that eye complications can occur more frequently in these patients. These eye complications may include blistering of the eyes.

Although medications may cause Stevens-Johnson syndrome more often, patients still need to watch for pneumonia. Symptoms may include a productive cough and fever. Mucous membrane swelling also seems to be common. These signs may appear one week before the skin blistering and rash.

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Anticonvulsants

Anticonvulsants seem to be common medications for preventing seizures. They also appear to treat epilepsy. However, this type of medication may also be a fairly common cause of Stevens-Johnson syndrome. Patients may need their doctor to examine their medication history if they deal with skin blistering. Other warning signs of this condition may also merit this action.

This may be especially important with anticonvulsants, as certain ones seem to cause this condition more often than others. Gabapentin appears to trigger this condition quite frequently. However, it may not be the anticonvulsant that has the highest risk of Stevens-Johnson syndrome. That medication may be phenytoin, according to research. Other high-risk medicines in this class seem to be diazepam and carbamazepine. Unfortunately, research does not appear to have discovered a clear reason why anticonvulsants may cause this condition. Some, however, seem to believe it is due to the drug's metabolites left in the patient's body.

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Pain Medication

It seems as if individuals who take significant amounts of pain medication may develop Stevens-Johnson syndrome. Some of the pain relievers that may result in this include ibuprofen and acetaminophen. Naproxen and meloxicam may also be high-risk pain relievers. This may be an unfortunate cause, since this condition also appears to be quite painful. It seems that there is no clear evidence of why pain medications trigger this condition. However, some researchers believe that the reason may be similar to anticonvulsants. In other words, it may be due to substances that the drugs leave in the patient's body.

Patients may want to watch their use of pain medication carefully. Reducing their use appears to help reduce their risk of Stevens-Johnson syndrome. Thus, they may only want to take it when it seems to be necessary.

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Liver Injury

Liver injury appears to be a major risk factor for Stevens-Johnson syndrome. The most common reason may be because certain types of liver damage can result from overusing medication. One of the medications that may trigger liver injury is acetaminophen. This medicine also seems to trigger Stevens-Johnson syndrome. However, liver injury due to medication may not be the only type that results in this condition.

Patients with a form of hepatitis, such as hepatitis A, may also be at risk. It seems as if Stevens-Johnson syndrome increases liver enzymes in over thirty percent of those with the condition. This may translate to ten percent with a full hepatitis infection. Thus, some researchers may consider hepatitis A and other forms a complication of Stevens-Johnson syndrome. Either way, individuals with a compromised liver seem to develop this condition more often.

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Gout Medication

Gout medication may also put individuals at a higher risk of Stevens-Johnson syndrome. Some studies even seem to claim that one of them, allopurinol, is the most common cause. However, gout patients may still require medication to treat their symptoms. Some patients believe that they may be at risk of developing Stevens-Johnson syndrome. Doctors appear to try other medicines for gout first because of this.

However, the dose may also matter. Higher doses of any gout medication may put patients at an increased risk of experiencing Stevens-Johnson syndrome. Thus, doctors may want to prescribe lower doses at first. The lowest effective dose appears to be the safest option. Patients may also benefit from only taking it for short periods. Doing this may keep their risk low, though they may still develop Stevens-Johnson syndrome occasionally.