Hepatotoxicidade por Nimesulide: a propósito de um caso clínico

Abstract

A case of a forty-four years old rural female admitted due to vaginal discharge and inguinal lymphadenopathies is presented. She took nimesulide and, after two days, started with constitutional symptoms. At hospital admission she presented with jaundice, conjunctival suffusion and pharyngeal injection. Blood tests revealed cytopenia, marked hepatic citolysis, cholestasis, renal failure and reactive C protein elevation. Complementary studies showed positive antinuclear autoantibodies, mild elevation of immunoglobulins M and E, and a thickened gallbladder wall. Lymphocyte transformation test was positive for nimesulide. There was a clinical and laboratorial improvement after cessation of the drug. The authors discuss the main diagnostic hypotheses enfatizing definition criteria for hepatotoxicity and also the difficulty in establishing this diagnosis