Renal Tubular Necrosis due to Nephrotoxicity of Organic Mercurial Diuretics

Article1 July 1962Renal Tubular Necrosis due to Nephrotoxicity of Organic Mercurial DiureticsRICHARD B. FREEMAN, M.D., JOHN F. MAHER, M.D., GEORGE E. SCHREINER, M.D., F.A.C.P., F. K. MOSTOFI, M.D.RICHARD B. FREEMAN, M.D.Search for more papers by this author, JOHN F. MAHER, M.D.Search for more papers by this author, GEORGE E. SCHREINER, M.D., F.A.C.P.Search for more papers by this author, F. K. MOSTOFI, M.D.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-57-1-34 SectionsAboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail ExcerptThe mercurial diuretics have been well established as therapeutic agents. Toxic reactions are rare when viewed against the frequency of diuretic therapy. Nephrotoxicity, one of the more serious complications of mercurial diuretics, has been both denied and documented (1).The present study adds 5 cases of renal tubular necrosis due to mercurial diuretics. Histologic material was drawn from the Georgetown University Hospital and Armed Forces Institute of Pathology. Criteria for inclusion were:1. Acute onset of oliguria, and renal failure following the administration of mercurial diuretic;2. No other ready explanation for the oliguria;3. A clinical course consistent with...References1. DEGRAFFNADLER ACJE: A review of the toxic manifestations of mercurial diuretics in man. J. A. M. A. 119: 1006, 1942. CrossrefGoogle Scholar2. FORBUS WD: Reaction to Injury, Vol. II, The Williams & Wilkins Company, Baltimore, 1952, p. 1110. Google Scholar3. ALLEN AC: The Kidney, Medical and Surgical Disease, Grune & Stratton, New York, 1951, p. 583. Google Scholar4. PITTSSARTORIUS RFOW: Mechanism of action and therapeutic use of diuretics, Pharmacol. 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