Stevens-Johnson syndrome following the use of phenytoin: A case report

Abstract

Background. This paper reports a case where the patient developed Stevens - Johnson syndrome (SJS) following the use of phenytoin. Case description. The case was an 85-year-old male admitted to the 9-Dey Hospital in Torbat-Heydariyeh city, Iran with a diagnosis of cardiovascular accident (CVA). On Day 2 of hospitalization, phenytoin medication was started to control the patient’s seizures. On Day 10, the patient developed a 39.2°C fever and also a generalized rash starting from the upper limbs and spreading to the whole body. The dermatologist diagnosed SJS and recommended replacing phenytoin with an alternative drug for seizure control. From Day 15 onwards, his rashes started to decrease and almost entirely disappeared a week later. Conclusion. Considering the range and severity of the adverse effects of SJS, physicians need to be familiar with the symptoms of these reactions so that the drug can be replaced as soon as such symptoms emerge.

Keywords

• stevens - johnson syndrome
• disorder
• phenytoin