injuries and poisoning
Acetaminophen Poisoning
Introduction
Acetaminophen, a common ingredient in many prescription and non-prescription drugs, is safe in normal doses, but severe overdose can cause liver failure and death. People sometimes ingest too many products that containacetaminophenand poison themselves. Depending on the amount ofacetaminophenin the blood, symptoms range from none at all to vomiting and abdominal pain to liver failure and death. The diagnosis is based on the amount ofacetaminophenin the blood and results of liver function tests. Acetylcysteineis given to reduce the toxicity of theacetaminophen. (See also Overview of Poisoning .) More than 100 products containacetaminophen, a common over-the-counter pain reliever that is also present in many combination prescription drugs. If several similar products are consumed at a time, a person may inadvertently take too muchacetaminophen. Many preparations intended for use in children are available in liquid, tablet, and capsule form, and a parent may try several preparations simultaneously or within several hours to treat a fever or pain, not realizing they all containacetaminophen. Acetaminophenusually is a very safe drug, but it is not harmless. To cause poisoning, several times the recommended dose ofacetaminophenmust be taken. For example, the recommended dose for a person who weighs 155 pounds (70 kg) is two to three 325-milligram tablets every 6 hours. A toxic dose for this person is at least about thirty tablets taken all at once. Death is extremely unlikely unless the person takes more than forty 325-milligram tablets. Therefore, a singleacetaminophenoverdose that causes serious toxicity is usually not accidental. can damage the liver. Liver Failure can follow. 