Access to treatment for phenylketonuria by judicial means in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

Treatment of phenylketonuria (PKU) includes the use of a metabolic formula which should be provided free of charge by the Unified Health System (SUS). This retrospective, observational study sought to characterize judicial channels to obtain PKU treatment in Rio Grande do Sul (RS), Brazil. Lawsuits filed between 2001- 2010 and having as beneficiaries PKU patients requesting treatment for the disease were included.