There are two main types of side effects associated with the use of Hydralazine. These are an extended influence of the drug’s pharmacologic effect, where these is headache, flushing, hypotension, nausea, tachycardia, dizziness, palpitation and angina pectoris, and can also cause salt retention in congestive heart failure (Arce et al. 2006).these adverse effects can be described even within the therapeutic range, conversely patients may withstand up to 800mg or more daily. Hydralazine poisonings are believed to be very uncommon (inchem.org, 2015). Apresoline induced vascular collapse frequently occurs in the area of increased cardiac output and is seen primarily related to a significant decrease in in blood pressure and to deterioration of the arterial pressure pulse (Judson et al, 1956). The second side effect is related to immunological reactions, where a drug induced lupus- like syndrome (Arce et al, 2006). This syndrome can be seen in 15% of patients taking a dosage of 400mg or higher of the drug. This result is mostly seen in slow acetylators (Toxnet.nlm.nih.gov, 2015). As a slow acetylator, it is believed that the patient metabolises hydralazine through an alternative pathway, which creates a metabolite which is seen by the host as a foreign body, and thus initiating an immune response (faculty.swosu.edu, 2015). Over 80 drugs have been linked to drug induced lupus erythematosus, and two of these, Hydralazine and procainamide, have been shown to be high risk of contraction of the syndrome, with 20% occurrence within 1 year of therapy. Clinical symptoms and laboratory findings of drug induced lupus are alike to the
