minocycline and Erythema-Nodosum

Management of chronic/recurrent erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL) is challenging. The majority of these patients become steroid-dependent and suffer from the adverse effects of long-term corticosteroid use. Minocycline has shown promising results in a small series of chronic/recurrent ENL patients. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of minocycline and clofazimine in patients with chronic/recurrent ENL. In this prospective randomized clinical trial, 60 participants with chronic/recurrent ENL were randomized (1:1) to receive either minocycline 100 mg once daily or clofazimine 100 mg thrice daily for 12 weeks along with prednisolone according to WHO protocol and followed up for 6 months. The outcome measures were mean time for initial control of ENL, proportion of patients having a recurrence of ENL, mean time for recurrence after initial control, additional prednisolone requirement, and frequency of adverse events. Initial control of ENL was achieved earlier in the minocycline group as compared to the clofazimine group (2.97 ± 1.9 weeks vs. 4 ± 1.96 weeks, respectively; p-0.048). The number of participants having ENL flares/recurrences during the study period was comparable in both groups (71.4% in clofazimine vs. 55.2% in minocycline group; p-0.2). The participants in the minocycline group remained in remission for a longer duration after initial control of ENL as compared to the clofazimine group (p-0.001). Mean additional prednisolone dose required for control of ENL flares/recurrences was also comparable in both groups (p-0.09). The minocycline group had fewer side effects than the clofazimine group (p-0.047). Minocycline led to a rapid and sustained improvement of ENL episodes with fewer adverse events showing a superior efficacy to clofazimine.

Topics: Clofazimine; Erythema Nodosum; Humans; Leprostatic Agents; Leprosy, Lepromatous; Minocycline; Prospective Studies

Topics: Anti-Bacterial Agents; Betamethasone; Crohn Disease; Diagnosis, Differential; Erythema Nodosum; Humans; Male; Minocycline; Ointments; Sweet Syndrome; Young Adult

Topics: Adult; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Chronic Disease; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Erythema Nodosum; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Leprosy, Lepromatous; Male; Minocycline; Pilot Projects; Prospective Studies; Recurrence; Time Factors; Treatment Outcome

Erythema nodosum leprosum is defined by the appearance of tender skin nodules, which can be accompanied by fever, joint pain, neuritis, edema, malaise and/or lymphadenopathy. The authors describe the case of a 19-year-old Angolan black woman, resident in Portugal for the last 10 years, diagnosed with Hansen's disease at the age of 12, irregular with follow-up and non-compliant with treatment. She was referred to our clinic with painful nodules and pustules on the upper limbs, diffuse facial infiltration with pustules and fever, after initiating minocycline with the intention of treating acne. Diagnosis of erythema nodosum leprosum was confirmed by the presence of acid-fast bacilli in the skin smear and also in skin biopsy. Minocycline was suspended and the patient was treated with systemic steroids, with prompt clinical improvement. Our case is reported to alert clinicians to this unusual presentation of erythema nodosum leprosum in a patient treated with highly bactericidal drugs that were not intended to treat Hansen's disease.

Topics: Acne Vulgaris; Biopsy, Needle; Drug Therapy, Combination; Erythema Nodosum; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Leprostatic Agents; Leprosy, Lepromatous; Minocycline; Prednisolone; Risk Assessment; Treatment Outcome; Young Adult

We report a case of Chlamydophila (C.) pneumoniae infection presenting with fever and rapid intrahepatic cholestasis. A 63-year-old man had a week-long history of intermittent high fever and rapidly progressive jaundice with atypical erythema. The results of liver function tests were recorded. The results of all serological tests were negative; the IgM, IgG, and IgA titers for C. pneumoniae had increased, which indicates a C. pneumoniae infection. The patient's fever and liver dysfunction improved upon administration of minocycline. Light microscopic findings showed the presence of enlarged liver cells with clear cytoplasm, a few mitotic figures, multinucleated cells, and bile cholestasis. The electron microscopic appearance of liver biopsy showed that bile canaliculi exhibited intrahepatic forms of cholestasis. From the results of light and electron microscopy, we inferred atypical intrahepatic cholestasis, probably resulting from the C. pneumoniae infection.

Topics: Alanine Transaminase; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Antibodies, Bacterial; Aspartate Aminotransferases; Chlamydophila Infections; Chlamydophila pneumoniae; Cholestasis, Intrahepatic; Erythema Nodosum; Fever; Humans; Jaundice, Obstructive; Liver; Lung; Male; Middle Aged; Minocycline

Topics: Adult; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Chronic Disease; Erythema Nodosum; Female; Humans; Hyperpigmentation; Minocycline; Recurrence; Tetracycline

Leprosy affects skin and peripheral nerves, and acute inflammatory type 1 reactions (reversal reaction) can cause neurologic impairment and disabilities. Single skin lesion paucibacillary leprosy volunteers (N = 135) recruited in three Brazilian endemic regions, treated with single-dose rifampin, ofloxacin, and minocycline (ROM), were monitored for 3 years. Poor outcome was defined as type 1 reactions with or without neuritis. IgM anti-phenolic glycolipid I, histopathology, Mitsuda test, and Mycobacterium leprae DNA polymerase chain reaction (ML-PCR) were performed at baseline. chi(2) test, Kaplan-Meir curves, and Cox proportional hazards were applied. The majority of volunteers were adults with a mean age of 30.5 +/- 15.4 years; 44.4% were ML-PCR positive. During follow-up, 14.8% of the patients had a poor clinical outcome, classified as a type 1 reaction. Older age (> or = 40 years), ML-PCR positivity, and lesion size > 5 cm were associated with increased risk. In multivariate analysis, age (> or = 40 years) and ML-PCR positivity remained baseline predictors of type 1 reaction among monolesion leprosy patients.

Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Aging; Cohort Studies; DNA, Bacterial; Erythema Nodosum; Female; Humans; Leprosy; Male; Middle Aged; Minocycline; Mycobacterium leprae; Ofloxacin; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Rifampin; Risk Factors; Time Factors

We report a patient with lepromatous leprosy who developed a rare variant of type-2 lepra reaction, characterized by pustular lesions, on switching from WHO multi drug therapy (MDT) to ofloxacin-aided MDT.

Topics: Abscess; Adult; Drug Resistance, Bacterial; Drug Therapy, Combination; Erythema Nodosum; Humans; Leprostatic Agents; Leprosy, Lepromatous; Macrophages; Male; Melanins; Minocycline; Mycobacterium tuberculosis; Neutrophils; Ofloxacin; Rifampin; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; Vasculitis

Hyperpigmentation, pulmonary infiltration, and erythema nodosum occurred in a patient receiving long-term minocycline therapy. Bronchoalveolar lavage revealed both a neutrophilic and an eosinophilic alveolitis. The pulmonary and systemic symptoms promptly resolved after discontinuation of minocycline.

Topics: Administration, Cutaneous; Adult; Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid; Erythema Nodosum; Female; Humans; Minocycline; Neutrophils; Pigmentation Disorders; Pulmonary Fibrosis; Tetracyclines