Methimazole use may increase acute pancreatitis risk, finds study
Novara, Italy: The use of methimazole (MMI) increases the risk of acute pancreatitis (AP), the increased risk is limited to the first months of MMI treatment with the absolute risk being quite low, suggests a recent study. The results, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, supports the recent warnings by the European Medicine Agency (EMA). MMI is a medication used for the treatment of hyperthyroidism.
Alessandro Pecere, Università del Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy, and colleagues investigated the association between MMI and the diagnosis of AP in a population-based study.
The researchers conducted a retrospective analysis of administrative health databases from 2013 to 2018. Relevant data were obtained from -- drug claims registry, hospital discharge records, and inhabitants registry. AP risk in MMI users were evaluated in 18 months of treatment. The absolute risk of AP in MMI users was also calculated. A total of 23,087 new users of MMI were identified.
Key findings of the study include:
- 61 hospitalizations occurred during the study period.
- An increase in AP risk was evident during the first three trimesters of therapy (RR 3.40]; RR 2.40; RR 2.80), but disappeared thereafter.
- The AP absolute risk in MMI users during the first 18 months of treatment were less than 0.4% in all sex- and age-classes.
"Our findings support warning from EMA, suggesting an increased AP risk associated with MMI use. However, such an increase seems limited to the first months of MMI treatment. Moreover, in absolute terms, the probability of AP is low among patients, well below 1%," included the authors.
The study, "Methimazole treatment and risk of acute pancreatitis: a population-based cohort study," is published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
