Case Report
Liver Transplant in a Patient under Methylphenidate
Therapy: A Case Report and Review of the Literature
Hoi Y. Tong,
1
Carmen Díaz,
2
Elena Collantes,
3
Nicolás Medrano,
1
Alberto M. Borobia,
1
Paloma Jara,
2
and Elena Ramírez
1
1
Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Hospital Universitario La Paz, IdiPaz, School of Medicina,
Universidad Aut´ onoma de Madrid, Paseo de la Castellana 261, 28046 Madrid, Spain
2
Pediatric Hepatology Department, Hospital Universitario La Paz, IdiPaz, Paseo de la Castellana 261,
28046 Madrid, Spain
3
Pathological Anatomy Department, Hospital Universitario La Paz, IdiPaz, Paseo de la Castellana 261,
28046 Madrid, Spain
Correspondence should be addressed to Elena Ram´ ırez; elena.ramirez@inv.uam.es
Received 13 October 2014; Accepted 9 December 2014
Academic Editor: Seyed Mohsen Dehghani
Copyright © 2015 Hoi Y. Tong et al. his is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License,
which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Background. Methylphenidate (MPH) is widely used in treating children with attention-deicit-hyperactivity disorder. Hepatotox-
icity is a rare phenomenon; only few cases are described with no liver failure. Case. We report on the case of a 12-year-old boy
who received MPH for attention-deicit-hyperactivity disorder. Two months later the patient presented with signs and symptoms
of hepatitis and MPH was discontinued, showing progressive worsening and developing liver failure and a liver transplantation
was required. Other causes of liver failure were ruled out and the liver biopsy was suggestive of drug toxicity. Discussion. One
rare adverse reaction of MPH is hepatotoxicity. he review of the literature shows few cases of liver injury attributed to MPH; all of
them recovered ater withdrawing the treatment. he probable mechanism of liver injury was MPH direct toxicity to hepatocytes. In
order to establish the diagnosis of MPH-induced liver injury, we used CIOMS/RUCAM scale that led to an assessment of “possible”
relationship. his report provides the irst published case of acute MPH-induced liver failure with successful hepatic transplantation.
Conclusions. It is important to know that hepatotoxicity can occur in patients with MPH treatment and monitoring the liver’s
function is highly recommended.
1. Introduction
Methylphenidate hydrochloride (MPH) is a chain substi-
tuted amphetamine derivative that primarily acts as nore-
pinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor. he Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) irst approved MPH on 1955; however,
it was not until the 1990s when MPH saw a dramatic increase
in its prescription. In the PATS study almost one-third of the
children revealed some side efects, mainly weight loss and
neurological efects [1]. A few scattered and sporadic cases
of hepatotoxicity with MPH treatment have been reported
and usually referred to transient elevation of liver enzymes.
his report describes a case of irreversible methylphenidate-
induced liver failure.
2. Case Presentation
A 12-year-old boy with no relevant medical history was
treated with MPH at an appropriate dose of 30 mg daily
for attention-deicit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and no
other treatment was received in the previous months. Ater
two months of treatment, the patient presented with a 2-day
history of generalized itching, malaise, fatigue, and anorexia
and with no fever. At that time, MPH was discontinued. Initial
aminotransferases (alanine aminotransferase, ALT; aspartate
aminotransferase, AST), total bilirubin, and alkaline phos-
phatase were elevated, while hepatitis panel (HBsAg, anti-
HBcore, anti-HAV, anti-HIV, CMV IgM, and syphilis) was
negative, and the patient’s health continued to worsen in
Hindawi Publishing Corporation
Case Reports in Pediatrics
Volume 2015, Article ID 437298, 5 pages
http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/437298