Pleuropulmonary Fibrosis Associated with Chronic and Excessive Intake of Ergotamine
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Thorax 1983;38:396-398 Pleuropulmonary fibrosis associated with chronic and excessive intake of ergotamine BARBARA G TAAL, EGILIUS LH SPIERINGS, C HILVERING From the Departments ofPulmonology and Neurology, University Hospital Dijkzigt, Rotterdam, The Netherlands Retroperitoneal, pleuropulmonary, and endocardial in weight over a period of six months. He had smoked 20 fibroses are relatively uncommon but serious side effects of cigarettes a day, but he no longer enjoyed smoking. In the prophylactic antimigraine drug methysergide.1 2 January 1976 a chest radiograph taken during population Ergotamine is a potent drug in the treatment of the mig- screening for tuberculosis showed grossly pathological fea- raine attack, and is chemically related to methysergide. tures of the lungs and pleura, and he was admitted to hos- Retroperitoneal fibrosis has been reported in ergotamine pital. users3-' and recently the occurrence of pleuropulmonary On examination the patient appeared well and was not fibrosis with ergotamine was described.6 In the case dyspnoeic. His blood pressure was 130/80 mm Hg and reported here a causal relationship between the long-term pulse rate 52 per minute, with sinus bradycardia on the use of ergotamine and the occurrence of pleuropulmonary electrocardiogram. The chest showed a decreased excur- fibrosis appears highly probable. sion on the right with no movement of the diaphragm on percussion. The resonance to percussion was decreased Case report over the lower lobe with decreased tactile fremitus, decreased breath sounds, and a crackling friction rub. The The patient had started suffering from headaches at the heart sounds were normal. age of 36 years. At first the headaches occurred once a Laboratory studies showed a considerably increased week and lasted for one to two days. They were accom- erythrocyte sedimentation rate of 118 mm in one hour, a panied by nausea and vomiting but there was no photo- reduced haemoglobin concentration of 8.3 g/dl, a normal phobia or phonophobia and no prodromal symptoms. The white cell count of 8*5 x 109/l, and a normal eosinophil patient's mother and three sisters also suffered from recur- count of 0-127 x 109/1. The serum alkaline phosphatase rent headaches. level was 82 U/I (upper limit of normal 45 U/1) and y- In 1964, when he was 42, a neurologist diagnosed his glutamyl transpeptidase 68 U/l (upper limit of normal 25 headaches as probably migrainous and prescribed Cafergot U/l), while the serum transaminase levels were normal. suppositories, which contain 2 mg ergotamine tartrate and The serum protein concentration was 82 g/l (albumin 36 g/l 100 mg caffeine. This had a favourable effect on the and y-globulin 17 g/l). The serum IgM concentration was attacks. Gradually, however, the frequency of the within the normal range, but the IgG was increased to 20-9 headaches increased and finally the patient took two or g/l (upper limit of normal 18 g/l). Antinuclear antibody, three suppositories a day. The headaches changed in lupus erythematosus cell, and latex fixation tests were character. Instead of occurring in attacks, the pain became negative. more chronic, although varying in intensity, and was more The chest radiograph on admission (fig la) showed pre- like a burning sensation at the vertex. The headache was dominantly right-sided pleural thickening with obliteration aggravated by the consumption of alcohol and emotional of the costophrenic angle by pleural effusion and a excitement. Several prophylactic drugs, such as clonidine, tumour-like mass between the middle and lower lobe. A pizotifen, and a compound tablet containing belladonna small calcified spot in the right apex indicated non-active alkaloids, phenobarbitone, and ergotamine tartrate, were tuberculosis. A pleural tap produced an exudate with a prescribed without success; but he never used methyser- protein content of 43 g/l. Sputum examination, including gide. cultures for Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and cytological In June 1975 the patient felt feverish and had a produc- examination gave negative results. Pulmonary function tive cough. Although these symptoms disappeared after tests indicated a restrictive ventilatory defect, with a vital three months he gradually became short of breath. He capacity of 2-2 1 and FEV, of 1-9 1; arterial blood gases noted that he could no longer take a deep breath because were normal. the movement of his chest seemed to be restricted, but he To exclude malignancy a right-sided thoracotomy was had no chest pain. His appetite decreased and he lost 10 kg performed. The pleural membrane was abnormally thick. Microscopic examination of the biopsy specimens (Dr AG Aaronson, Department of Pathology, Faulkner Hospital, Address for reprint requests: Dr BG Taal, Antoni van Boston, USA) showed pleural fibrosis of the adult collagen Leeuwenhoekhuis, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Plesmanlaan type with broad bands of hyalinised material with fibro- 121, 1066 CX Amsterdam, The Netherlands. blasts. In addition, in the underlying soft tissue a dense lym- Accepted 8 November 1982 phocytic infiltration was seen. The small blood vessels 396 Pleuropulmonary fibrosis associated with chronic and excessive intake ofergotamine 397 Fig 1 (a) Chest radiograph on admission showing bilateral pleural thickening with right-sided pleural effusion. (b) Chest radiograph two years later showing mild fibrosis on the right side. Fig 2 Small blood vessel with endothelial hyperplasia and round-cell inflammadon ofthe adventitia. (Periodic acid Schiff x 760.) 398 Taal, Spierings, Hilvering showed endothelial hyperplasia and round-cell inflamma- cell-mediated immune response to ergotamine was not tion of the adventitia (fig 2), while the large vessels con- found by a lymphocyte activation test of the patient's tained fibrin-like depositions along the endothelium. The lymphocytes in vitro. underlying lung tissue showed interstitial fibrosis. The mechanism by which methysergide and ergotamine Immunoperoxidase stains for IgG, IgM, IgA, and comple- might cause fibrosis is not clear. Because the effect cannot ment and the Congo red stain for amyloidosis gave nega- be reproduced in animals it has been suggested that the tive results. Incubation of peripheral lymphocytes of the lesions might be due to an idiosyncratic or hypersensitivity patient with varying concentrations of ergotamine failed to reaction.7 Such a reaction, however, would be dose inde- increase the rate of incorporation of 3H-thymidine by these pendent, whereas the fibrosis in patients using ergotamine lymphocytes. has been reported almost exclusively after chronic and Since a causal relationship between ergotamine and the excessive use. pleural fibrosis was suspected the suppositories were dis- Another possible explanation for the fibrosis is pro- continued. Gradually the dyspnoea decreased, while the longed vasoconstriction in relatively poorly vascularised results of the pulmonary function and laboratory tests tissues.8 Methysergide is a weaker vasoconstrictive agent improved. The chest radiograph showed a regression of the than is ergotamine.9 An effect in which ergotamine and pleural fibrosis during several months. Two years later the methysergide seem to be equally potent is that of potentiat- vital capacity had risen to 3-3 1 and the FEV, to 2-6 1; the ing serotonin-induced effects.'0 Serotonin from carcinoid ESR was 25 mm in one hour. A radiograph three years tumours has been suggested as a cause of fibrosis. 'later (fig lb) showed only mild residual fibrosis. We are grateful to Dr John R Graham for his help in the Discussion preparation of the manuscript. References Pleural fibrosis and effusion may occur as a complication of inflammatory disease (for example, rheumatoid arthritis 'Graham JR, Suby HI, LeCompte PR, Sadowsky NL. Fibrotic and systemic lupus erythematosus), and both primary and disorders associated with methysergide therapy for headache. metastatic tumours. Despite extensive investigations, how- N Engl J Med 1966;274:359-68. ever, no evidence for any of these diseases was found in 2 Bana DS, MacNeal PS, LeCompte PR, Shah Y, Graham JR. this patient. Cardiac murmurs and endocardial fibrosis associated with In 1966 Graham et al drew attention to a fibrotic condi- methysergide treatment. Am Heart J 1974;88:640-55. Tournigand P, DiMarino V, Mercier C. Une cause rare de com- tion affecting the pleura and adjacent lung parenchyma in pression veineuse intra-abdominale. Phlebologie 1974;27: patients taking methysergide for migrainous headache.' 161-5. Since then pleuropulmonary, retroperitoneal, and endo- 4Hostadter F. Ergotaminabusus als Ursache einer Retro- cardial fibrosis have proved to be serious though rela- peritoneal-fibrose. Zbl Allg Pathol 1976;120:83-7. tively uncommon side effects of methysergide treatment. 5 Vrin Ph, Bresque E, Vizdy A, Lagoutte F. Fibrose Pleural fibrosis has been suggested as a side effect of the r6troperitoneale et derives de l'ergot. Bull Soc Ophthalmol use of ergotamine in a Danish report dealing with seven 1974;74:281-6. patients.6 They presented with inspiratory stabbing pain in ' Ibsen KK, Lindeneg 0. Ergotaminbehandling og pleuritis. Ugeskr Laeg 1979;141:960. the chest and developed pleural effusion and fibrosis, 7Hodel Ch, Griffith R. Inability to reproduce retroperitoneal which diminished after discontinuation of the drug, as in fibrosis in animal toxicity studies with methysergide. Int Congr our case. Chronic and excessive use of ergotamine has also Series 1973;15:317-22. been implicated in cases