FATAL APLASTIC ANEMIA ASSOCIATED WITH CHLORAMPHENICOL (CHLOROMYCETIN®) THERAPY

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Abstract
Two cases of fatal aplastic anemia in patients receiving chloramphenicol (chloromycetin®) are reported, and the literature is reviewed briefly. In both patients, a 71-year-old widow and a 92-year-old man, an initial course of treatment with the antibiotic was uneventful, but resumption of therapy after an interval of several weeks was associated with hematological complications. REPORT OF CASES Case 1.— R. C. B., a 71-year-old white physician's wife, complained of weakness and a rash on her legs in January, 1952. When examined by one of us (A. A. H.), who had attended her for 15 years, discrete and confluent petechiae and ecchymoses were found in widespread distribution, including the oral mucosa. Except for the purpura, her physical condition was the same as it had been for years. There was no history or familial history of asthma, hay fever, urticaria, or blood dyscrasia. Since 1932 the patient had intermittently followed a dietary