Chlorpromazine-Induced Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Abstract
A 38-year-old man developed polyarthritis, light-sensitive butterfly area eruption, pleurisy with effusion, leukopenia, and fever after taking 400 mg of chlorpromazine daily for 17 months. Lupus erythematosus (LE) cells and antinuclear antibodies (ANA) were present. Following cessation of the medication, improvement occurred within two weeks; symptoms recurred on challenging with chlorpromazine within 36 hours. The LE cells and ANA disappeared two months after the drug was withdrawn.