title: Acute caffeine ingestion fatalities: management issues.
abstract: Caffeine is used and abused on a daily basis in different beverages, OTC products, and as a prescribed medication. The strength varies widely from negligible in decaffeinated drinks to medicinal grade of 200 mg/tablet. A total of 7,655 exposures were recorded in 1995 by the AAPCC Toxic Exposure Surveillance System with no fatality. However, within a 4-mo period, the Panhandle Poison Center recorded 2 deaths due to caffeine overdose. The abrupt onset of intractable seizures needs to be anticipated in order to appropriately manage the victims and to prevent the adverse outcome.
authors.affiliation: Panhandle Poison Center, Northwest Texas Healthcare System Inc, Amarillo 79175, USA.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shum
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Seale
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hathaway
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Chucovich
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Beard
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002110:Caffeine / Q000032:analysis / Q000506:poisoning*; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants / Q000506:poisoning*; D004032:Diet; D062787:Drug Overdose / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations / Q000737:chemistry; D011039:Poison Control Centers; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D012640:Seizures / Q000209:etiology; D013781:Texas / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations; D002110:Caffeine