Hypertension: a complication of danazol therapy

Danazol is a semisynthetic androgen that is used in the treatment of endometriosis and hereditary angioedema. Although fluid retention and weight gain are well-known complictaions of danazol therapy, to our knowledge hypertension has not been previously documented with the use of this drug. We have studied a patient with hereditary angioedema who exhibited a reproducible hypertension with danazol therapy. Based on our investigation, the resultant hypertension was primarily volume dependent. The hypertension in this patient failed to respond to propranolol hydrochloride, while it normalized with the administration of a small dose of a diuretic. In view of the growing indications for therapy with danazol, increasing numbers of susceptible patients may be at risk of having drug-induced hypertension develop. We, therefore, recommend that blood pressure be routinely monitored in patients receiving this drug.