Desensitization therapy for allergic reactions to antituberculous drugs

We retrospectively evaluated the clinical usefulness of desensitization therapy for many patients showing allergic reactions to anti-mycobacterial drugs (INH and RFP) according to the proposition reported by the Japanese Society for Tuberculosis (JST).

Desensitization therapy for anti-mycobacterial drugs was performed according to the propositions of JST for forty-six patients with mycobacterial disease in several hospitals participating in the Chugoku-Shikoku Mycobacterial Disease Committee between January 1999 and December 2009.

Adverse reactions occurred as drug-induced skin eruptions in 23 patients, drug-induced fever in 16, and drug-induced fever plus eruption in 7. The causative drugs suggested by the clinical course or DLST were RFP in 30 patients and INH in 16. The clinical effects of desensitization therapy for individual drugs was good in 23 of 30 patients (77%) receiving RFP, and in 13 of 16 (81%) receiving INH. Ten patients showing failure of desensitization included 5 elderly patients and 2 patients with a history of drug allergies. The interval until initiation of desensitization therapy ranged from 5 to 30 days after the disappearance of adverse reactions and the interval until the appearance of adverse reactions during desensitization therapy ranged from 3 to 18 days. A comparative study between the patient group with successful desensitization therapy and that with failure of desensitization did not show any significant differences except for the interval until initiation of desensitization therapy.

We confirmed the clinical effectiveness of desensitization therapy for anti-mycobacterial drugs according to the propositions of JST in this multicenter study.