02180nas a2200265   4500000000100000008004100001260001700042653003900059653001300098653002600111653001100137653001200148653003400160653002500194653001600219100001500235700001100250700002000261700001200281245002800293300001100321490000700332520156100339022001401900       2000                            d  c2000 May-Jun10aAcquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome10aCachexia10aGraft vs Host Disease10aHumans10aleprosy10aLupus Erythematosus, Systemic10aStomatitis, Aphthous10aThalidomide1 aGrover J K1 aVats V1 aGopalakrishna R1 aRamam M00aThalidomide: a re-look.  a132-410 v133 a<p>Thalidomide was synthesized in 1954 in erstwhile West Germany and marketed as a sedative in over 46 countries until the early 1960s. Owing to serious teratogenic effects, the drug was withdrawn from the market in 1961. A chance observation suggested the utility of thalidomide in erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL). After many controlled and uncontrolled trials were published, the World Health Organization recommended its use in ENL. The Food and Drug Administration, USA approved it for use in ENL in July 1998. Only established and well-defined studies conducted to substantiate the efficacy of thalidomide have been included in this review. Thalidomide is considered the drug of choice for the treatment of ENL, but for other conditions, it is recommended only when resistance to the currently available form of therapy is encountered. Once the anti-inflammatory, immuno-modulatory, anti-TNF-alpha and anti-angiogenic properties of thalidomide were discovered, it was also tried in AIDS and related wasting, apthous ulcers, microsporidiosis and Kaposi's sarcoma. Thalidomide has no clinical place as an immunosuppressant in solid organ transplantation. However, it has a therapeutic role in graft-verus-host-disease. Among the dermatological conditions, thalidomide has been found to be effective in systemic lupus erythematosus, discoid lupus erythematosus, actinic prurigo and prurigo nodularis. Used correctly, it is a safe and effective medicine (except for its teratogenic potential and delayed neuropathy) in a variety of disease conditions.</p>  a0970-258X