Lanthanum carbonate possibly responsible for acute liver failure in a patient with Child–Pugh stage A liver cirrhosis

Abstract

The majority of patients with end-stage renal disease have hyperphosphataemia, which is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Lanthanum carbonate has been introduced as a new treatment modality to lower serum phosphorus. But there has been ongoing concern about lanthanum accumulation in tissues, especially in liver. We describe the case of a woman with pre-existing liver disease, who presented with acute liver failure after introduction of lanthanum carbonate to her treatment. The condition was fully reversible after stopping lanthanum carbonate.