Desferrioxamine B: reversible side effects of high daily doses

16 patients with chronic liver or haematologic diseases were parenterally given various doses of Desferrioxamine B (DF). Each daily dose of DF (from 1 to 4 g) was given for a 7 days cycle. Liver, kidney and blood functions were investigated at the first and seventh day of each cycle, and 1 and 2 weeks after therapy was stopped. 1 g/day and 2 g/day had no side effects, with the exception of a fall of white blood cell (WBC) count in a single case on 2 g/day. 3 g/day (15 patients) were followed by rises of blood urea, creatinine, alkaline phosphatase and glutamyl-transpeptidase respectively in 4 cases, and by falls of WBC count in 3 cases. 4 g/day (9 patients) caused rises of creatinine, GPT and GOT (1 case) or LDH (1 case), while WBC count dropped in 4 cases. All changes were reversible within one-two weeks. These recorded changes were outside the range of pretreatment values as obtained over the previous four weeks.