Clinical usefulness of cimetidine for the treatment of acute intermittent porphyria--a preliminary report.
A 43-yr-old man with abdominal fullness was treated with oral cimetidine during remission of acute intermittent porphyria. Urinary prophobilinogen and porphyrins were not altered by the treatment, but urinary delta-aminolevulinic acid decreased, and abdominal fullness disappeared. Thus, cimetidine may control acute intermittent porphyria by inhibiting hepatic delta-aminolevulinic acid synthetase.
D000624:5-Aminolevulinate Synthetase / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D000622:Aminolevulinic Acid / Q000652:urine; D002927:Cimetidine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D011164:Porphyrias / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism
D002927:Cimetidine; D000622:Aminolevulinic Acid; D000624:5-Aminolevulinate Synthetase