Meropenem induced symmetric drug-related intertriginous flexural exanthem

• Author Details:   
• Samuel Jeyaraj Daniel
• Balaji Ganesh Jayaraman
• Saranya Selvam
• Abirami Thangaraj ^*

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Danish dermatologists first identified the baboon syndrome in 1984, referring to a skin eruption that was restricted to the buttocks, axilla, groin and that might have involved the flexural areas and intertriginous zones without systemic involvement. Swiss dermatologists introduced a new acronym, Symmetrical Drug Related Intertriginous and Flexural Exanthem (SDRIFE), and it has five distinctive diagnostic criteria for at the start of the twenty-first century. Antibiotics including amoxicillin, cephalosporins and chemotherapeutic agents are the most common drugs causing SDRIFE. This is type 4 hypersensitivity reaction, appearing from 1 hour to several days after intake of culprit drug. SDRIFE induced by β-lactam antibiotics especially aminopenicillins, has been the most frequently reported type. No cases related to broad spectrum antibiotic like carbapenem group of drugs especially meropenem have been documented in Indian literature so far.

Keywords: Baboon syndrome, Flexural exanthema, Skin eruption.