Hydroxychloroquine: Serious skin adverse events ‘rare’
Fewer than 4% of events reported to the FDA were for Stevens-Johnson syndrome or toxic epidermal necrolysis
The antimalarial hydroxychloroquine can be associated with serious dermatological adverse events, but they are rare, new findings show.
US researchers retrospectively reviewed 1970-2019 data from the US Food and Drug Administration Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) on adverse reactions linked to hydroxychloroquine, analysing 9242 cases.
Drug hypersensitivity reactions, rash and dermatitis were the most common events, accounting for 61% of cases, while pruritus (4.7%) and urticaria (4.5%) were also relatively common.
Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis, skin necrosis and vasculitis accounted for 3.6% of adverse reactions to the drug, reported Dr Shari Lipner of Weill Cornell Medicine in New York and colleagues.
