However, dapsone can potentially cause severe side effects, meaning that sometimes steroids or other antibiotics should be used instead, although these alternative treatments are much less effective.An August 2015 review notes that dapsone is reported to be effective against generalized granuloma annulare.Dapsone has been used as a monomer in the design of dye adsorbent polymers. Contraindications and precautions
People with porphyria, anemia, cardiac disease, lung disease, HIV infection, G6PD deficiency, and liver impairment are at higher risks of adverse effects when using dapsone. Adverse effects
Hypersensitivity reactions occur in 1.4% of persons treated with dapsone, and can be fatal in medical settings with low resources. It is a form of severe cutaneous adverse reactions (SCARs) in which a SCARs disorder, primarily the DRESS syndrome or a DRESS syndrome-like reaction occurs. Blood
Hemolysis is the most prominent side-effect, occurring in about 20 % of patients treated with dapsone, although it is dose-related. It may lead to hemolytic anemia and methemoglobinemia. The side-effect is more common and severe in those with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency, leading to the dapsone-containing antimalarial combination Lapdap being withdrawn from clinical use. A case of hemolysis in a neonate from dapsone in breast milk has been reported. Agranulocytosis occurs rarely when dapsone is used alone but more frequently in combination regimens for malaria prophylaxis. Abnormalities in white blood cell formation, including aplastic anemia, are rare, yet are the cause of the majority of deaths attributable to dapsone therapy.Methemoglobinemia occurs in about 15 % of patients treated with long-term dapsone at standard doses (100 mg/day).
Giving thrombolytics (clot-busting) in such cases causes intracerebral bleeding 1 to 2% of the time, which is less than that of people with strokes. This unnecessary treatment adds to health care costs. Even so, the AHA/ASA guidelines state that starting intravenous tPA in possible mimics is preferred to delaying treatment for additional testing.Women, African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, Asian and Pacific Islanders are more often misdiagnosed for a condition other than stroke when in fact having a stroke. In addition, adults under 44 years of age are seven times more likely to have a stroke missed than are adults over 75 years of age. This is especially the case for younger people with posterior circulation infarcts. Some medical centers have used hyperacute MRI in experimental studies for persons initially thought to have a low likelihood of stroke. And in some of these persons, strokes have been found which were then treated with thrombolytic medication. Prevention
Given the disease burden of strokes, prevention is an important public health concern. Primary prevention is less effective than secondary prevention (as judged by the number needed to treat to prevent one stroke per year). Recent guidelines detail the evidence for primary prevention in stroke. In those who are otherwise healthy, aspirin does not appear beneficial and thus is not recommended. In people who have had a myocardial infarction or those with a high cardiovascular risk, it provides some protection against a first stroke. In those who have previously had a stroke, treatment with medications such as aspirin, clopidogrel, and dipyridamole may be beneficial.