Details

Penicillamine is a chelating agent. It attaches to other chemicals in the body, which aids in their removal. Penicillamine is used to remove excess copper associated with Wilson's disease. It is also used to reduce cystine in the urine and to treat severe rheumatoid arthritis. Before taking penicillamine, tell your doctor if you have kidney disease or any other serious illness. You may not be able to take penicillamine, or you may require a lower dose or special monitoring during therapy. Penicillamine may cause birth defects in an unborn baby.

Typical Uses

Penicillamine is used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, Wilson's disease (a condition in which high levels of copper in the body cause damage to the liver, brain, and other organs), and a certain disorder which causes kidney stones (cystinuria). For the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, penicillamine is known as a disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (DMARD). It helps to decrease pain/tenderness/swelling in the joints. For the treatment of Wilson's disease, penicillamine binds to copper and helps it to be removed from the body. Decreasing copper levels helps to improve liver function and the mental/mood/nerve problems (such as confusion, difficulty speaking/walking) caused by the disease. For the treatment of cystinuria, penicillamine helps to decrease the amount of a certain substance (cystine) in the urine which can cause kidney stones. This drug may also be used to treat lead poisoning.

Side Effects

Common penicillamine side effects may include an allergic reaction (shortness of breath closing of your throat difficulty breathing swelling of your lips, face, or tongue or hives) fever or chills a sore throat unusual bleeding or bruising blood in the urine unexplained shortness of breath, coughing, or wheezing abdominal pain yellow skin or eyes muscle weakness or double vision.

Drug Interactions

• Penicillamine+clozapine- Using clozapine together with penicillamine is not recommended. Clozapine can lower white blood cell count, and combining it with other medications that can also affect bone marrow function such as penicillamine may increase the risk. You may be more likely to develop serious and potentially life-threatening infections as a result.
• Penicillamine+deferiprone- Deferiprone can lower white blood cell count, and combining it with other medications that can also affect bone marrow function such as penicillamine may increase the risk. You may be more likely to develop serious and potentially life-threatening infections as a result.
• Penicillamine+leflunomide- Using leflunomide together with penicillamine can increase the risk of side effects that affect your bone marrow function, resulting in low numbers of different types of blood cells. This can make you more likely to develop anaemia, bleeding problems, or infections. Because leflunomide can stay in your blood for a prolonged period after the last dose, interactions with other drugs may occur for some time even after you have stopped taking it. Talk to your doctor if you have any questions or concerns.
• Penicillamine+teriflunomide- Using teriflunomide together with penicillamine can increase the risk of side effects that affect your bone marrow function, resulting in low numbers of different types of blood cells. This can make you more likely to develop anaemia, bleeding problems, or infections. Because teriflunomide can stay in your blood for a prolonged period after the last dose, interactions with other drugs

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Mechanism of action

Penicillamine is a chelating agent (remove heavy metals from the body), prescribed for Wilson disease (excess copper in the body), severe rheumatoid arthritis that has not responded to other treatments, and cystinuria (excess amino acids in the urine, which causes kidney stones).

Pregnancy Category : D