The Turkish Journal of Pediatrics
2012 , Vol 54 , Num 6
One Drop Can Be Beneficial, One Swig Can Be Deadly: Tetrahydrozoline Intoxication
Department of Pediatrics, Ondokuz Mayıs University Faculty of Medicine, Samsun, Turkey. E-mail: sukrupaksu@yahoo.com
Tetrahydrozoline is a commonly used imidazoline derivative with serious side
effects and toxicity, particularly in small children. A one-year-old boy was
admitted to the emergency department (ED) after he accidentally ingested about
half a bottle of nasal decongestant solution containing tetrahydrozoline. He
was unconscious, hypothermic and bradycardic on presentation. His respiration
was irregular and superficial, and blood pressure was borderline hypotensive.
His skin was pale and cold. Atropine was administered twice for symptomatic
bradycardia, and the child was transferred to the pediatric intensive care
unit (PICU). During the 12th hour of observation, vital signs returned to
normal and there was no need for mechanical ventilation. Although suitable
room temperature with passive warming was applied, hypothermia continued
for approximately 24 hours. The patient was discharged on the second day
of admission. There were no complaints one week later, and the physical
examination was normal. We report a case of accidental tetrahydrozoline
intoxication with life-threatening events accompanying hypothermia in a
small infant.
Keywords :
imidazoline, tetrahydrozoline, child, intoxication, hypothermia.