INTRODUCTION AND AIMS Opioid overdose fatalities are a significant concern globally. Non-fatal overdoses have been described as a strong predictor for future overdoses, and are often attended by the ambulance services. This paper explores characteristics associated with non-fatal overdoses and aims to identify possible trends among these events in an urban area in Norway. DESIGN AND METHODS T...

STUDY OBJECTIVE Antipsychotic drugs are frequently reported to cause QT prolongation and torsade de pointes. We aim to investigate the potential risk of torsade de pointes in antipsychotic overdose by assessing the QT interval with the QT nomogram. METHODS All presentations to a toxicology service between January 1987 and May 2013 were reviewed. Admissions with single ingestions of an antipsy...

BACKGROUND Buprenorphine is used as maintenance therapy for opioid-dependent patients. In comparison with other opioids it is thought to be safer because it is less likely to cause serious respiratory depression. However, concomitant use of psychotropics, especially benzodiazepines, and intravenous injection of dissolved buprenorphine tablets increase the risk of a serious overdose. METHODS A...

lamotrigine is an antiepileptic drug used as a treatment for partial and generalised seizures as well as for bipolar disorder type i. till date, very few cases of lamotrigine overdose have been reported. the spectra of clinical effects of lamotrigine in acute overdose are not well established. in severe cases of poisoning, serious effects such as coma, respiratory depression, recurrent seizures...

OBJECTIVE Paracetamol is the most common cause of acute liver failure (ALF) in many countries. Much data on paracetamol toxicity originate from liver transplant centers and tertiary referral institutions. The authors analyzed the population-based annual incidence of paracetamol overdoses and ALF, and described the risk factors for hepatotoxicity. METHODS A search was undertaken for the diagno...

BACKGROUND Users of electronic health record (EHR) systems frequently prescribe doses outside recommended dose ranges, and tend to ignore the alerts that result. Since some of these dosing errors are the result of system design flaws, analysis of large overdoses can lead to the discovery of needed system changes. OBJECTIVES To develop database techniques for detecting and extracting large ove...

PROBLEM Overdoses involving prescription drugs in the United States have reached epidemic proportions over the past 20 years. METHODS This review categorizes and summarizes literature on the topic dating from the first published reports through 2011 using a traditional epidemiologic model of host, agent, and environment. RESULTS Host factors include male sex, middle age, non-Hispanic white ...