Vanishing bile duct syndrome associated with elevated pancreatic enzymes after short-term administration of amoxicillin

Antibiotic-associated vanishing bile duct syndrome: a real-world retrospective and pharmacovigilance database analysis

PURPOSE

Vanishing bile duct syndrome (VBDS) is a rare, but potentially fatal adverse reaction triggered by certain medications. Few real-world studies have shown association between antibiotics and VBDS. We sought to quantify the risk and evaluate the clinical features of VBDS associated with antibiotics.

METHODS

Data from 2004 to 2022 on VBDS events induced by antibiotics were retrieved from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) database and disproportionality analyses were conducted. Furthermore, case reports from 2000 to 31 December 2022 on antibiotics-induced VBDS were retrieved for retrospective analysis.

RESULTS

We collected 132 VBDS reports from the FAERS database. Fluoroquinolones had the greatest proportion and highest positive signal values of VBDS. The RORs (95% CIs) for antibiotics were fluoroquinolones 23.68 (18.12-30.95), macrolides 19.37 (13.58-27.62), carbapenems 17.39 (7.77-38.96), beta-lactam 13.28 (9.69-18.20), trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole 9.05 (5.57-14.7), and tetracycline 4.02 (1.50-10.77). Twenty-three cases from 22 studies showed evidence of VBDS, beta-lactam (52.2%) was the most frequently reported agent. The median age was 45 years, the typical initial symptoms included rash (30.4%), fatigue/asthenia (26.1%), dark urine (21.7%) and Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS)/toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) (21.7%). The median time to onset of VBDS was 2 weeks. All cases had abnormal liver function test, and the median level of total bilirubin was 23.6 mg/dl (range 3.2-80 mg/dl). Cessation of culprit drugs and treatment with ursodeoxycholic acid (83.3%) were not associated with improved outcomes (57.1%).

CONCLUSION

This study identified thirteen antibacterial agents with significant reporting associations with VBDS. Fluoroquinolones may be a neglected agent of inducing VBDS.

Vanishing bile duct syndrome after drug-induced liver injury

BACKGROUND

Vanishing bile duct syndrome (VBDS) is a serious cholestatic liver disease that can be a complication of drug-induced liver injury (DILI). While journals have published case reports of this condition, large studies on a cohort of these patients are lacking. We aimed to compile published case reports and case series of patients with VBDS and DILI to describe the clinical and laboratory characteristics of the disease and identify factors associated with good and poor outcomes.

METHODS

We included case reports and case series of VBDS secondary only to DILI. We extracted demographic, clinical, laboratory, treatment, and exposure data from each case report and categorized cases by outcome, good versus poor. We defined poor outcomes as cases with severe long-term complications or death. We analyzed risk factors for poor outcomes using logistic regression.

RESULTS

We identified a total of 59 eligible cases. Of those, 39 (59%) were female, the median age was 36 (IQR:12-58), and 18 (31%) were pediatric cases (≤18 years). The most common offending drug class was antibiotics, especially beta-lactams. Patients with increased total bilirubin (OR=4.69; 95% CI=1.55-15.49; p = 0.008), increased direct bilirubin (OR=6.50; 95% CI=1.34-48.91; p = 0.034), lower liver synthetic activity (OR=0.11; 95% CI=0.02-0.55; p = 0.013), and older age (OR=3.31; 95% CI=1.15-10.04; p = 0.029) were more likely to develop poor outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS

In patients with VBDS and DILI, antibiotics were the most common offending agents. Higher total and direct bilirubin levels were associated with poor outcomes.

The first report of atovaquone/proguanil-induced vanishing bile duct syndrome: Case report and mini-review

The combination of Atovaquone and Proguanil (Malarone™) has been widely used for treatment and prevention of Plasmodium falciparum malaria. Transient elevation of liver enzymes is a recognized side effect of the medication. The association of Vanishing bile duct syndrome (VBDS) with the use of Atovaqoune/Proguanil was not previously reported. We describe a case of a 62-year-old male with no history of liver disease who presented with painless jaundice after receiving malaria prophylaxis with Atovaquone-proguanil for 25 days. The patient developed severe hepatitis with Vanishing bile duct syndrome. This case highlights a serious side effect of a usually well-tolerated medication.

Is the standard dose of amoxicillin-clavulanic acid sufficient?

Background

The pharmacodynamic (PD) efficacy target of amoxicillin is 40% time above the minimal inhibition concentration (40%T > MIC). Recent studies of other antibiotics have shown that PD-efficacy targets are not always reached. The aim of this study was to evaluate the percentage of hospitalised patients, using amoxicillin/clavulanic acid intravenously (iv), that reach the pharmacodynamic efficacy target 40%T > MIC. Additionally, the association of demographic anthropomorphic and clinical parameters with the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of amoxicillin were determined.

Methods

In serum of 57 hospitalised patients amoxicillin concentrations were measured using high performance liquid chromatography. Patients were older than 18 years and most patients had an abdominal infection. The standard amoxicillin/clavulanic acid dose was 4 times a day 1000/200 mg iv. Pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated with maximum a posteriori Bayesian estimation (MW\Pharm 3.60). A one-compartment open model was used. Individual dosing simulations were performed with MW\Pharm.

Results

In our study population, the mean (±SD) age was 67 (±16) years and the mean clearance corrected for bodyweight was 0.17 (±0.07) L/h/kg. Only, 65% of the patients reached the proposed amoxicillin 40%T > MIC with amoxicillin/clavulanic acid for bacterial MICs of 8 mg/L. A computer simulated increase of the standard dose to 6 times daily, increased this percentage to 95%. In this small study group 40%T > MIC was not associated with clinical or microbiological cure.

Conclusion

A substantial proportion of the hospitalised patients did not reach the 40%T > MIC with the standard dose amoxicillin/clavulanic acid for a bacterial MIC of 8 mg/L. Therefore, we suggest increasing the standard dose of amoxicillin/clavulanic acid to 6 times a day in patients with severe Enterobacteriaceae infections.

Trial registration

Trial registration number: NTR1725 16^th march 2009.

Antibiotic induced liver injury: what about children?

Antimicrobial agents are important causes of drug-induced liver injury. They are responsible for about 45% of cases of drug hepatotoxicity. Hepatic damage mechanisms are intrinsic or idiosyncratic. Usually, antibiotics are responsible for idiosyncratic toxicity. This review summarizes the rate of incidence and clinical features of hepatotoxicity due to antibiotics and chemotherapics, with particular attention to data regarding paediatric population. Liver injury features have been systematically evaluated for the most commonly administered antibiotics and chemotherapics in adults, even though there is little information about other widely used compounds, as cephalosporine or clarithromycin, and about antibiotics active against multi-resistant bacteria, as carbapenems, vancomycin, clindamycin, and linezolid. By contrast, there is an abundance of case reports in paediatrics, but very few structured studies have been carried out in children. Children are an important class of antibiotic users, with specific metabolic characteristics, so more studies on them should be carried out.

A case of amoxicillin-induced hepatocellular liver injury with bile-duct damage

Amoxicillin, an antibiotic that is widely prescribed for various infections, is associated with a very low rate of drug-induced liver injury; hepatitis and cholestasis are rare complications. Here we present a case of a 39-year-old woman who was diagnosed with abdominal actinomycosis and received amoxicillin treatment. The patient displayed hepatocellular and bile-duct injury, in addition to elevated levels of liver enzymes. The patient was diagnosed with amoxicillin-induced cholestatic hepatitis. When amoxicillin was discontinued, the patient's symptoms improved and her liver enzyme levels reduced to near to the normal range.

Amoxicillin and amoxicillin plus clavulanate: a safety review

Despite the considerable number of newer antibacterials made available over the past decades, amoxicillin, alone or in combination with clavulanic acid, still accounts among the most widely used antibacterial agents. Although they are often considered 'twin drugs', they are different both in terms of antibacterial activities and of safety profile. It is well documented that the clavulanate component may cause adverse reactions by itself, thus exposing patients to further, and sometimes undue, risks. Although amoxicillin/clavulanate should be considered as an alternative agent only for the treatment of resistant bacteria, evidence shows that it is often used also when a narrow-spectrum antibiotic would have been just as effective. This prescription habit may have serious consequences in terms of patients' safety, as well as in terms of the development of bacterial resistance.