Panhypogammaglobulinaemia caused by gold therapy.

: Gold compounds have been successfully used for over 50 years in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, but their mechanism of action is unknown. The main disadvantage is the frequent occurrence of side effects which often necessitate discontinuation of therapy. Recently, there have been reports of reduction in immunoglobulin levels in patients on gold treatment; we report a further case of hypoglobulinaemia associated with gold therapy and recommend that immunoglobulins be monitored prior to and during treatment.