Cutaneous necrosis secondary to terlipressin therapy. A rare but serious side effect: case report and literature review

Abstract

Terlipressin is a vasopressin analogue used in esophageal variceal bleeding and hepatorenal syndrome management. It is a safe drug with mild secondary effects. However, potentially serious ischemic complications may occur, such as cutaneous necrosis. It is useful to recognize these events early, in order to withdraw terlipressin and introduce other adjuvant drugs if needed. We report a detailed case of cutaneous necrosis secondary to terlipressin administration and present a case review of patients, describing their characteristics, risk factors, lesion locations, doses, methods of administration and possible treatments.

Keywords

• Terlipressin
• Cutaneous necrosis
• Side effect