RSS Feeds
Suramin and Function of the Adrenal Cortex
- CY A. STEIN, M.D., Ph.D.;
- WAYNE SAVILLE, B.S.;
- ROBERT YARCHOAN, M.D.;
- S. BRODER, M.D.; and
- EDWARD P. GELMANN, M.D.
Excerpt
To the editor: Suramin (Germanin, Bayer 205), the sodium salt of a sulfonated naphthyl polyurea, was initially introduced as a treatment for African trypanosomiasis. More recently, it has undergone clinical testing in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) (1) because of its ability to block the infectivity and cytopathic effect of the human T-lymphotropic virus type III/lymphadenopathy associated virus (2). We report an important apparent toxicity of suramin and describe the case of a patient with AIDS who developed profound hypoadrenalism after treatment with the drug.
A 35-year-old white man with AIDS and Kaposi's sarcoma since 1982 had received
