Adverse Cutaneous Drug Reactions: Clinical Patterns & Its Impact on the Quality of Life. A Two Year Survey at Dermatology out Patient Clinic of Tertiary Care Hospital

Adverse cutaneous drug reactions (ACDR) are an important clinical entity seen in dermatology outdoor patient practice and it form a major cause of patient’s morbidity & mortality. Our objective was to evaluate the different clinical spectrum of ACDR in dermatology outdoor department patients & to establish the impact of ACDR on the quality of life of patients. All 110 patients, more than 16 years of age, attended the dermatology outdoor department were enrolled. Morphological patterns of ACDR & their culprit drugs were recorded. Finlay & Khan’s 10 questions were assessed in all 110 patients and DLQI score was prepared for each individual patient. The mean age of patients with ACDR was 34.09 years. Male to female ratio was 1.2:1. The most common ACDR observed were Fixed Drug Eruption (FDR) (30.9%) and maculo papular rash (20%). The most common causative agent was antimicrobial group of drug. Higher DLQI score (Dermatology Life Quality Index-impairment of quality of life) was observed in exfoliative dermatitis (29), Drug Rash with Eosinophilia & Systemic Symptoms (DRESS) (28.5) & severe Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS) (27). Knowledge of different patterns of ACDR & their causative drugs is essential for a dermatology consultant, because it helps in reducing morbidity, mortality and health care cost of ACDR patients. Impairment of quality of life of ACDR patient can be measured by DLQI score. Knowledge of different patterns of ACDR & their DLQI score helps to reduce morbidity, mortality and health care cost of ACDR patients.