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If you or a family member has suffered from the rare but life-threatening adverse reaction to medication known as Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS), or its most severe form, toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), you already may be aware of the value information available at the Stevens Johnson Syndrome Foundation site (www.sjssupport.org). Unless you study the site, you may not be away of all the resources available.
Helen Milne makes a good point.
In a recent post on her blog, Sight for Sore Eyes SJS, the mother of a boy who had been diagnosed with toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), the most severe form of Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS), ranted about the updates to over-the-counter medications to kids. The warnings, she said, were nondescript and did not adequately portray the dangers that could occur when taking the medication, like the reaction her son had when he was just 3. For Helen, a more reasonable warning label would read: “If your child survives the most agonizing drug reaction, they will live with intense pain and vision loss for the rest of their lives.”
The serious adverse reaction to medication known as Stevens Johnson Syndrome, or SJS, is rare in the U.S. and most countries, occurring in about one person per million each year. However, doctors at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taipei, Taiwan, have seen as many as 40 to 50 cases of SJS in only a year. “Sometimes we see two or three in a single week,” says Ghung Wen-Hung, a researcher at Chang Gung, who was quoted in the Taipei Times.
Researchers like Wen-Hung are asking why.
The FDA has approved labeling for a drug to treat chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL), to include a warning of a rare but life-threatening reaction to medication known as toxic epidermal necrolysis, also known as TEN, according to MedScape Today. TEN is the most severe form of Stevens Johnson Syndrome, or SJS, a condition that affects the skin and mucus membranes. Rashes appear on the skin and blister over, causing the skin to peel off in sheets. More than 200 drugs are linked to SJS and TEN, the most common being ibuprofen, antibiotics and anti-seizure medicines. The reported incidence of SJS or TEN is about one case per million people per year.
The International Serious Adverse Events Consortium (SAEC) is a global, nonprofit partnership between leading pharmaceutical companies, the FDA and academic institutions. It was organized just more than a year ago. Among its goals, the consortium hopes to identify genetic markers that predict which individuals are at risk for drug-related serious adverse reactions, also known as SAEs.
Natural health products may be all the rage in alternative medicine, however many herbal remedies are linked to serious adverse reactions and potential health risks, according to the January 2009 edition of Health Canada’s Canadian Adverse Reaction Newsletter.
A stimulant-type drug recently was added to the list of medications that may cause Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS), a rare but life-threatening condition affecting the skin and mucus membranes, causing the skin to blister and peel away in sheets. MedPage Today reported that drug maker Cephalon has agreed to update the drug’s label to warn of the potential risk of SJS and other serious rashes and hypersensitivity reactions.
Gary Beatham had been blamed for her death. He couldn’t understand why.
Beatham’s girlfriend of two years, Louise Armstrong, came down with flu-like symptoms in late December. The morning of New Year’s Eve, Beatham woke in their Penrith, Australia, home to find his partner gravely ill with blisters covering her body. He called the ambulance, but it was too late. Armstrong had died.
Kim Oake’s voice on the phone is strong. It is hard to believe she is the same woman I first wrote about less than a month ago. Then, she was in the hospital and fighting for her life. Seventy percent of her skin had blistered and peeled away, and she was put into a drug-induced coma to shield her from pain and help her fight infection.
Kim had suffered a severe adverse reaction to a common antibiotic she received after being bitten by a feral cat. She was diagnosed with toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), the most severe form of Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS).
Rachel, known as SpunkyRachel online, says she was caught off guard by friends – both old and new – who had seen her videos on YouTube. She had posted several of them these past few months – some with her bald head uncovered and her dark skin blotched with white patches.
Rachel was looking for others like her – people who had taken common medication, like ibuprofen from the super market, and had a severe adverse reaction called Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS) or its most severe form toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN).
