Acute renal failure--a complication of new multidrug regimen for treatment of leprosy.

A leprosy patient who developed acute renal failure on multidrug therapy is reported. The patient had initially received a once-weekly dose of rifampin and after he had stopped taking the drug for a time, was given rifampin on a once-monthly dose schedule. He recovered completely from his acute renal failure. Kidney biopsy showed interstitial nephritis with mononuclear and eosinophilic cellular infiltrates.