SJS Causes
Known causes of Stevens Johnson Syndrome are broken into four different categories: underlying infections, drug reactions, malignancies, and unknown. In half of recorded cases, no specific cause has been identified. This is due to the wide array of viruses and drugs that the disease may be attributed to.
Underlying viral infections such as herpes simplex, AIDS, coxsackie viral infections, influenza, and mumps have all been factors in producing some cases of SJS. Additionally, bacterial infections that have been recorded as causes of SJS include mycobacteriae, mycoplasma pneumonia, typhoid, brucellosis, and diphtheria.
Although some believe that underlying infection is a more likely cause of SJS, studies have proven that more than fifty percent of SJS & TENS cases are a result of adverse reactions to drugs, both prescription and over-the-counter medications. The medications that most often provoke this extreme allergic reaction are widely used by both adults and children. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as Children's Motrin®, which contains the NSAID Ibuprofen®, are the most common causes of drug reactions. Children, in particular, seem to be more susceptible to SJS and TEN, and some say women are as well. Stevens Johnson Syndrome does not discriminate however, and has been also been seen to occur in adults and adolescent males as well. Some researchers believe that Tylenol contains Acetaminophen, which has not been linked to or cause Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS) or Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis Syndrome (TENS), and is therefore believed to be a safer method of treatment for the same symptoms as those treated by Ibuprofen®.
Hundreds of recorded cases of Stevens Johnson Syndrome over the last century have been linked to adverse reactions to medications such as Ibuprofen®, Penicillin®, Bextra®, Dilantin®, Tegretol®, Levaquin® and many others. One problem with this is legislation: once a drug is approved, physicians are not legally required to report adverse reactions to the FDA. Therefore, less than one percent of drug reactions are reported to the federal government, leaving only an educated guess as to the real number of SJS and TEN cases worldwide. Experts say that at least 50 percent of known SJS cases are drug related and as more medications, antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs get onto the market, there is potential for more medications causing SJS.
