A case of drug-induced allergic hepatitis by herbal medicine

The case reported of a woman contracting drug-induced allergic hepatitis after taking a herbal medicine (Kaigen), available on the market, in treatment for her cold. The patient was a 31 year-old woman, after taking the herbal medicine, fever, general fatigue, eruption and jaundice were observed, with elevated serum levels of Alk-P, LAP, γ-GTP and GPT. Even after jaundice disappeared, the elevated serum levels of Alk-P, LAP and γ-GTP continued for a considerable period. Although lymphocyte transformation was not detectable upon culturing the patient's peripheral blood mononuclear cells together with the medicine in the presence of a carrier protein, positive lymphocyte transformation was induced by adding interleukin-2 to the culture. Among various components of the herbal medicine (Kaigen), the substance derived from the cinnamoni cortex, most probably cinnamic aldehyde, was presumed to be the causal substance for the induction of allergy, because lymphocyte transformation was induced by extract of cinnamoni cortex in the presence of carrier protein and interleukin-2.