[A CASE OF STEVENS-JOHNSON SYNDROME SUSPECTED BY A COMMON COLD MEDICATION AS CAUSE]

We describe here the case of a 7-year-old male patient with Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS), which was suspected to be caused by treatment with tipepidine hibenzate (Asverin^®). The day after taking tipepidine hibenzate and L-carbocysteine (Carbocysteine^® DS) for relief of a cold, he began presenting with the following symptoms: fever above 38°C, wheezing, and decreased oxygen saturation. Two days later, mucous membrane rashes, such as erosions on the lips, eye mucosa, vulva, and blisters on the trunk appeared, and SJS was thus diagnosed. Because pseudomembrane formation and corneal epithelial defect in the eyes were also observed, steroid pulse therapy was administered early in the course of the disease, and the patient recovered without sequelae.A drug-induced lymphocyte stimulation test performed to determine the cause of the disease was positive for fixed-dose combination therapy with tipepidine hibenzate plus L-carbocysteine and for tipepidine hibenzate alone. It has now been three years since the onset of the disease, and no sequelae have been observed. Although tipepidine hibenzate is a drug frequently used for pediatric patients, it should be administered with caution because of its potential to cause SJS.