Relationship between blood hydroxychloroquine and desethylchloroquine concentrations and cigarette smoking in treated patients with connective tissue diseases.

摘要

Cigarette smoking has been suspected to increase the risk and the activity of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and cutaneous lupus. Some data indicate that cigarette smoking might interfere with the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine in cutaneous lupus. As these antimalarial agents are partly metabolised via the cytochrome P450 enzyme system and as the constituents of cigarette smoke are known potent inducers of cytochrome P450, it has been hypothesised that the resistance of cutaneous lupus might be explained by a modification of the metabolism of these drugs.