Acetylcysteine treatment for non-acetaminophen-induced acute liver failure.

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of intravenous acetylcysteine in the treatment of non-acetaminophen-induced acute liver failure (ALF).

Data Sources: A search of MEDLINE (1966-March 2003), International Pharmaceutical Abstracts (1970-2003), and Cochrane Library (2003, issue 3) databases was conducted, using the search terms acetylcysteine, non-acetaminophen-induced hepatic failure, liver failure, intravenous, and treatment.

Data Synthesis: All of the studies found were small and do not provide conclusive evidence that acetylcysteine benefits this subgroup of patients.