[Analysis of notifications of drug-induced skin ulcers in Spain]

Skin ulcers are a serious health problem with significant socioeconomic and labour repercussions and a high tendency to chronicity and recurrence; approximately, up to 50% remain active between six months to one year.

To study the role of drugs in the aetiology of skin ulcers.

A comprehensive study of all spontaneous reports related to skin ulcers that appear in the Spanish Pharmacovigilance System of Medicines for Human Use database.

A total of 292 reports were identified containing suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) of ulcer lesion type. Three hundred sixty-nine medications with 427 active ingredients were identified. The ulcers appeared mainly in women with a mean age of 56.6 years. The most frequently reported suspected drugs were SGLT-2, vaccines against COVID-19, methotrexate, hydroxycarbamide, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, foscarnet trisodium hexahydrate, ribavirin, docetaxel, acenocumarol and imiquimod, and the combination of lidocaine Hcl-pentosan polysulfate sodium-triamcinolone acetonide.

Numerous medications may cause ulcers as an adverse reaction. This possibility should not be ruled out when a new skin lesion appears after the administration of new drugs since 25% of the ADRs were unknown at the time of their notification, as were the cases of ulcers associated with i-SGLT2 and vaccines against COVID at the beginning of their commercialization. However, informative health alerts can be generated by continuously notifying suspected ADRs, so we strongly advise reporting any suspected ADRs to the regional pharmacovigilance system.