1. Retrospective analysis of 18 cases of antithyroid drug (ATD)-induced agranulocytosis.
- Author
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Dai WX, Zhang JD, Zhan SW, Xu BZ, Jin H, Yao Y, Xin WC, and Bai Y
- Subjects
- Adult, Agranulocytosis drug therapy, Antithyroid Agents administration & dosage, Antithyroid Agents therapeutic use, Female, Glucocorticoids administration & dosage, Glucocorticoids therapeutic use, Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor administration & dosage, Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor therapeutic use, Graves Disease drug therapy, Humans, Leukocyte Count, Male, Methimazole administration & dosage, Methimazole therapeutic use, Middle Aged, Propylthiouracil administration & dosage, Propylthiouracil therapeutic use, Retrospective Studies, Agranulocytosis chemically induced, Antithyroid Agents adverse effects, Methimazole adverse effects, Propylthiouracil adverse effects
- Abstract
In this study, we retrospectively analyzed 18 patients in whom antithyroid drug (ATD)-induced agranulocytosis developed during treatment of Graves' disease. All patients were more than 20 years of age, and we saw no correlation between age and the development of agranulocytosis. In 17 of 18 patients, ATD-induced agranulocytosis developed within 2 to 12 weeks of starting ATD treatment. Development of agranulocytosis was related to the dose of ATD. In some patients, agranulocytosis developed abruptly, and even weekly routine WBC and granulocyte counts failed to predict all case occurrences. Fever and sore throat were the earliest symptoms of agranulocytosis; patients who developed either of these symptoms were closely monitored immediately with WBC and granulocyte count examinations. In this series of patients, treatment with granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) increased the granulocyte counts, whereas the effectiveness of glucocorticoid treatment was not confirmed.
- Published
- 2002
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