Urinary tract infections are usually bacterial. The most common symptoms in the early stages of infection are persistent urination and a burning sensation while urinating, especially in the lower urinary tract.
Its prevalence is higher in women than men. In this sense, one of the most commonly used drugs is nitrofuranone, a synthetic antibiotic recommended as a first-line treatment for urinary tract infections, whose most important adverse effect is liver damage in some patients. According to some studies, nitrofuranone-induced liver injury is more common in women and older adults, which may reflect greater use of this drug in these demographic groups due to its frequent prescribing.
The research was led by professionals from clinical hospital Professors from St. Victoria University University of Malaga (UMA) and researchers Ral J. Andrade and María Isabel Lucena, group leaders of the “Hepatogastroenterology, Pharmacology and Translational Clinical Therapeutics” platform of IBIMA Bionand. In addition, Dr. Andrade is the Chief of Digestive Services at Our Lady of Victoria University Hospital.
The corresponding author of this scientific publication is María Isabel Lucena, Director of the Clinical Pharmacology Service of the Santa Maria del Victoria University Hospital and Director of the Clinical Research and Clinical Trials Unit of the Institute (UICEC-IBIMA) Coordinator.
The study, published in the journal Archives of Toxicology, focused on possible liver damage caused by long-term use of these drugs to treat urinary tract infections.
The researchers in an international collaboration analyzed information on 23 patients from the Spanish Hepatotoxicity Registry and the Latin American Hepatotoxicity Registry, both led and coordinated by researchers from the IBIMA – Bionand Platform Group in Malaga. Demographic and clinical information of these patients was analyzed to characterize nitrofurantoin-induced liver injury, emphasizing that a common form of nitrofurantoin-induced liver injury is an autoimmune signature.
The study also included researchers from IBIMA, the BIONAND platform, and other centers belonging to the Spanish Hepatotoxicity Registry and the Latin American Hepatotoxicity Registry (LATINDILI Network), including hospitals in Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Chile, and Peru.
Ral J. Andrade noted: “Our study strengthens the concept that nitrofurantoin can induce liver injury, often associated with asymptomatic presentation. Furthermore, nitrofurantoin-induced autoimmune hepatitis may be related to classic idiopathic autoimmune hepatitis Indistinguishable.” The latter requires immunosuppression. Clinicians should consider when prescribing nitrofurantoin that long-term treatment may be associated with a greater likelihood of developing this nitrofurantoin-induced autoimmune liver injury phenotype. “