Sulfonamides · Pharmacology

Sulfonamides are contraindicated in newborns because they can displace bilirubin from albumin, leading to which neurological condition?

  1. Reye's syndrome
  2. Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome
  3. Meningitis
  4. Kernicterus
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Correct answer: Kernicterus

In neonates, sulfonamides compete with bilirubin for binding sites on serum albumin. The resulting increase in free unconjugated bilirubin allows it to cross the immature blood-brain barrier and deposit in the basal ganglia, causing permanent brain damage (kernicterus).

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