Chronic hepatitis ascribed to the use of sotalol

In a 68-year-old woman with severe chronic hepatitis an extensive investigation revealed no other cause than the use of sotalol for 10 months due to atrial fibrillation. Once the use of the medication had been discontinued the patient's symptoms quickly disappeared and the liver function disord...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde Vol. 145; no. 48; p. 2340
Main Authors:	Kootte, A M, Janssens, A R, Ouwehand, D K, van Leeuwen, A M
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	Dutch
Published:	Netherlands 01-12-2001
Subjects:	Adrenergic beta-Antagonists - adverse effects Aged Anti-Arrhythmia Agents - adverse effects Atrial Fibrillation - drug therapy Biopsy Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury, Chronic - diagnosis Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury, Chronic - etiology Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury, Chronic - pathology Diagnosis, Differential Female Humans Liver - drug effects Liver - pathology Severity of Illness Index Sotalol - adverse effects
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Summary:	In a 68-year-old woman with severe chronic hepatitis an extensive investigation revealed no other cause than the use of sotalol for 10 months due to atrial fibrillation. Once the use of the medication had been discontinued the patient's symptoms quickly disappeared and the liver function disorders normalised within 5 months. Sotalol is a beta-adrenergic receptor blocking and anti-arrhythmic agent. It is widely used in patients with supraventricular and ventricular arrhythmias. An adverse effect in terms of liver damage is not known. The pathogenesis of the observed hepatitis remained an enigma because sotalol is a hydrophilic substance which is not metabolized by the liver and is cleared by the kidneys unchanged.
ISSN:	0028-2162