“Safe” Drugs May Pose Liver Risk to Some
Drug-induced liver injury is the most common reason for a drug to be withdrawn from the market. A new study seeks to identify risk factors for medications and identify individuals who may be at risk for liver damage from certain drugs.
Thursday, July 7, 2005
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Durham, N.C. -- Even if a drug is safe for most patients, it may not be safe for
everyone. The most common reason a medication does not receive FDA
approval or has to be pulled from the market is its effect on the
liver, says Dr. Keyur Patel, an assistant professor in the Division
of Gastroenterology at Duke University Medical Center. “We’ve
known about the effects of drugs on the liver for over 50 years.
But with recently well-publicized drugs that have been withdrawn
from the market due to drug-induced liver injury, there’s been an
increased focus on coming up with better definitions of what
constitutes drug-induced liver injury.” Patel says a large,
multi-center study is now underway to help identify genetic and
environmental factors that may put some patients at risk for
drug-induced liver injury, either from a single drug or from the
interaction of prescription drugs, over-the-counter or herbal
medicines, even recreational drugs. “Clearly, the more
combinations of medications one takes, there is the potential for
interaction between medications and the ability of the liver to
handle these drugs.” I’m Cabell Smith for MedMinute.
