Porphyric

[Catherine Creel]

Dear Ellen,

You said:

"Porphyric causes" indicates a disorder of the porphyrins. The syndrome or
disease is called porphyria. All living things, including healthy people
produce porphyrins. In porphyria, there is an atypical accumulation of
porphyrins as the result of enzyme defects.
Porphyria tends to be under-diagnosed because people can be relatively
asymptomatic for some time. It usually takes years for physicians to
diagnose porphyria. There are certain drugs that can be deadly to people
with porphyria.
There are several types of porphyria, most of which are genetic.
However, there are a couple of forms of porphyria that can manifest as a
result of chemical damage to the enzyme system by toxins and pharmaceutical
drugs. I am aware of at least 19 people who developed porphyria after
taking the antidepressant drug Wellbutrin.

Regards,
Catherine