Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2016 Jan 20;3(2):133-5.
doi: 10.14309/crj.2016.24. eCollection 2016 Jan.

Severe Cholestasis and Bile Acid Nephropathy From Anabolic Steroids Successfully Treated With Plasmapheresis

Avegail Flores  1 , Rosemary Nustas  2 , Hoang-Lan Nguyen  3 , Robert S Rahimi  4
Affiliations
Case Reports

Severe Cholestasis and Bile Acid Nephropathy From Anabolic Steroids Successfully Treated With Plasmapheresis

Avegail Flores et al. ACG Case Rep J. .

Abstract

Severe cholestasis with anabolic androgenic steroids is well-known to cause acute liver injury. Treatment is usually supportive after withdrawal of the offending agent. Acute kidney injury (AKI) frequently occurs in acute liver injury and may complicate management and prognosis. We highlight the use of plasmapheresis resulting in rapid improvement in cholestatic jaundice with resolution of AKI. Plasmapheresis should be considered in special cases in which there is progressive clinical decline despite supportive care.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Liver biopsy. (A) Intraparenchymal neutrophilic infiltrate consistent with acute hepatitis. Hepatocyte destruction/necrosis is not significant (grade ¼). Some scattered chronic inflammatory cells are also present (arrow). (B) No appreciable cirrhosis, overt cytopathic effect or fibrosis.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Renal biopsy showing prominent brown intraluminal casts, tubular epithelial cells (black arrows), and tubular lumen (white arrows). (A) Many of the tubules are dilated and show epithelial simplification. (B) Tubule with brown staining of the epithelial lining and of the intraluminal cast.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Seeff LB, Curto TM, Szabo G, et al. . Herbal product use by persons enrolled in the Hepatitis C Antiviral Long-Term Treatment Against Cirrhosis (HALT-C) Trial. Hepatology. 2008;47(2):605–12. - PubMed
    1. Navarro VJ, Barnhart H, Bonkovsky HL, et al. . Liver injury from herbals and dietary supplements in the U.S. Drug-Induced Liver Injury Network. Hepatology. 2014;60(4):1399–408. - PMC - PubMed
    1. LiverTox Web site. http://livertox.nih.gov. Accessed March 29, 2015.
    1. Parkinson AB, Evans NA. Anabolic androgenic steroids: A survey of 500 users. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2006;38(4):644–51. - PubMed
    1. El Sherrif Y, Potts JR, Howard MR, et al. . Hepatotoxicity from anabolic androgenic steroids marketed as dietary supplements: Contribution from ATP8B1/ABCB11 mutations? Liver Int. 2013;33(8):1266–70. - PubMed

Publication types