[Drug-induced cholestasis]

Cholestasis is one kind of reaction of the liver to intolerable drugs. It is estimated that 2% of the patients who are treated for icterus in hospital suffer from drug intolerance. A differentiation is made between obligtory and optional liver-damaging substances. The latter are clinically important because they occur far more frequently. In principle nearly every drug may cause cholestasis, which must be taken into consideration especially with newly introduced drugs, e.g. in cholestasis caused by co-enzyme-A-reductase inhibitors in the treatment of hypercholesterinaemia. Cholestasis is most likely to occur after administration of the following group of substances: antiarrhythmics, antibiotics, tuberculostatics, salicylates, immunosuppressives, narcotics, tranquilizers, some antirheumatics, antidepressants, anticonvulsives, and sex hormones. This list does not claim to be complete or to be in any order of frequency.