Albendazole-Induced Liver Injury Mimicking Autoimmune Hepatitis

Drug-induced liver injury is one of the leading causes of acute liver injury and may mimic other liver diseases, including idiopathic autoimmune hepatitis. Although albendazole is generally a safe antiparasitic agent, it can be associated with rare cases of clinically significant liver injury; it can even cause a mixture of both types of injuries, or a type of hepatitis that is similar to an autoimmune disease, such as positive autoantibodies and elevated IgG, making differential diagnosis more difficult. We present a case of albendazole-induced liver injury mimicking autoimmune hepatitis in a 41-year-old woman with marked hyperbilirubinemia, positive ANA, and elevated IgG levels, in whom liver biopsy and clinical follow-up played an important role in clarifying the diagnosis.