Delayed and prolonged cholestatic hepatitis with ductopenia after long-term ciprofloxacin therapy for Crohn's disease.

Bataille L, Rahier J, Geubel A.

Department of Gastroenterology and Pathology, Saint Luc University Hospital, Universite Catholique de Louvain, 10 Avenue Hippocrate, 1200 Brussels, Belgium.

Ciprofloxacin, a fluorinated quinolone, is a powerful antibiotic widely used for its broad spectrum of activity in ambulatory and long-term care setting. Until now, ciprofloxacin administration has been associated with a few cases of acute, sometimes cholestatic jaundice or fulminant hepatic failure believed mainly related to idiosyncratic hypersensitivity. We report a case of delayed and prolonged cholestatic hepatitis with ductopenia occurring after 6 months of treatment in a patient with Crohn's disease. This observation suggests the potential for the drug to induce long-term likely dose-related severe hepatotoxicity. Copyright 2002 European Association for the Study of the Liver