While the causes of Stevens-Johnson Syndrome side effects are not completely understood, the autoimmune disorder has been linked to epilepsy drugs and, with the assistance of further research, it is easy to identify areas of risk both for people who do not currently have epilepsy and those that do.

One epilepsy drug that has been linked to Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS) is Dilantin, generic phenytoin. Dilantin, manufactured by Pfizer Inc., was approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) on Nov. 20, 2001. Phenytoin sodium, the main ingredient in Dilantin, was approved by the FDA in 1953. It is prescribed to treat temporal lobe seizures and grand mal seizures. Dilantin is also prescribed to to treat and prevent seizures in patients after major brain and spinal surgery, as well.

SJS starts out with flu-like symptoms such as fever, sore throat, and headache. The skin rash may initially start out as hives, but blisters will begin to develop on the skin and mucous membranes, especially the mouth, nose and eyes. It usually culminates in the shedding of the skin–which means that the top layer of the skin has died. Eating, sleeping and urinating can all become difficult.

A more severe form of SJS is toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN)  — in which 100 percent of the epidermis can separate from the body, as opposed to SJS, in which 30 percent of the skin is affected. TEN also has a much higher fatality rate.

Monitoring for flu-like symptoms and a rash on the extremities is critical, and so too is knowing what groups are most at risk for Stevens-Johnson Syndrome side effects.

According to a recent study, there are a number of factors that increase the likelihood of such a diagnosis. Specifically, patients with HIV have a thousand-fold increase in the odds, most likely because HIV patients have a weakened immune system. The elderly and women are also at a significantly greater risk.

Of course, all of that is compounded by drugs in the anticonvulsive class. Dilantin SJS side effects are a big enough problem that the medication carries a black box warning, but many other drugs cited in Stevens-Johnson Syndrome class action lawsuits do not. Those can include some types of antibiotics and over-the-counter pain relievers, such as Zithromax and Tylenol.