Amphotericin B lipid complex (ABLC)-associated hypertension: case report and review

Amphotericin B (AmB) continues to be the mainstay of therapy for serious fungal infections, despite its relatively toxic side-effect profile. Lipid preparations of the medication have been marketed in the past few years in an attempt to reduce some of these side effects, especially nephrotoxicity. Although 6 cases of severe hypertension associated with the use of AmB deoxycholate have been reported in the literature, no cases of hypertension associated with a lipid-containing preparation of the medication have been reported. We report here the first case of severe hypertension associated with the infusion of AmB lipid complex (ABLC) in a patient with multiple intraperitoneal and urinary fungal pathogens. We also provide a brief review of the previously reported cases of hypertension associated with the deoxycholate formulation of AmB.