Colchicine Myopathy and Neuromyopathy

In Brief Colchicine, a long established anti-inflammatory agent now used in several rheumatologic conditions, acts by inhibiting microtubular polymerization, as it binds equimolarly to tubulin molecules. Cytoskeletal microtubules are crucial in processes of cell viability, such as mitosis and intracellular vesicle motility. Gastrointestinal side effects are quite common and often minor in nature or duration, whereas neuromuscular toxicity is rare. We report 2 cases of colchicine myopathy in the context of very different clinical settings. A 15-year-old man with familial Mediterranean fever and a 57-year-old woman with gout developed these complications despite normal or near-normal renal function.