Drug patch testing in Stevens-Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis A systematic review

Background: The data on patch testing (PT) to identify culprit medications in Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis (SJS/TEN) are limited to scattered case reports and small case series, without analysis of overall trends to inform clinicians of its utility, methodology, and safety. Objective: To conduct a systematic review of the practice of PT in SJS/TEN, quantify the positivity rate of common drug classes, and assess safety during testing. Methods: PubMed was searched from inception to 2021. Search terms included patch testing AND SJS OR TEN OR Stevens-Johnson syndrome OR toxic epidermal necrolysis OR Lyell's syndrome. Results: There were 58 articles that met the inclusion criteria. In total, 82 patients underwent patch testing for SJS/TEN, resulting in 104 positive reactions to 49 unique medications. Antiepileptic drugs were responsible for 48.1% of the positive reactions; antibiotics, 28.8%; and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, 6.7%. The positivity rates of antiepileptics, antibiotics, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs were 33.1%, 13.1%, and 21.9%, respectively. When accounting for suspected causality, these rates increased to 54.3%, 78.4%, and 54.5%, respectively. Three patients (3.7%), 2 of whom had human immunodeficiency virus infection and active tuberculosis, experienced systemic reactions during PT, which required only conservative treatment. Conclusion: Published reports suggest that PT in SJS/TEN is useful and safe. Antiepileptic drugs have been tested most frequently and found to have the highest positivity rate. There is a critical need for large-scale studies with standardized methodology to obtain reproducible data on PT in SJS/TEN. & COPY; 2023 American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

A systematic review was conducted to assess the utility and safety of patch testing in SJS/TEN. The results showed that patch testing is useful and safe in this condition. Antiepileptic drugs had the highest positivity rate. Large-scale studies with standardized methodology are needed to obtain reproducible data on patch testing in SJS/TEN.