title: Over-the-counter sympathomimetics: a risk factor for cardiac arrhythmias in pregnancy.
abstract: More than 170 over-the-counter (OTC) preparations contain a sympathomimetic agent as the active ingredient. Nonprescription medicines are consumed commonly in our society. Phenylpropanolamine, an alpha-adrenergic agonist as well as a popular decongestant, is consumed at a massive volume of 5 billion doses annually. Over-the-counter sympathomimetics have been reported to cause hypertension and arrhythmias. Despite the ability to cause these potentially serious adverse effects and the high-volume consumption of these agents, the medical literature until recently has been scant in reporting adverse events. We report symptomatic ventricular arrhythmia and presyncope in a 36-year-old pregnant woman who consumed relatively high doses of two OTC cold remedies simultaneously. Increased physician awareness of the potential side effects associated with OTC sympathomimetics as well as improved level of patient education are needed. Finally, we support the calls for more prominent warning labels on some selected OTC preparations, including OTC sympathomimetics.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Greater Baltimore Medical Center, MD 21204, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Onuigbo
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Alikhan
mesh_terms: D000316:Adrenergic alpha-Agonists / Q000009:adverse effects; D000328:Adult; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000139:chemically induced*; D004809:Ephedrine / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D014663:Nasal Decongestants / Q000009:adverse effects; D004366:Nonprescription Drugs / Q000009:adverse effects*; D010665:Phenylpropanolamine / Q000009:adverse effects; D011247:Pregnancy; D011249:Pregnancy Complications, Cardiovascular / Q000139:chemically induced*; D013566:Sympathomimetics / Q000009:adverse effects*; D013575:Syncope / Q000139:chemically induced; D018879:Ventricular Premature Complexes / Q000139:chemically induced
chemical_list: D000316:Adrenergic alpha-Agonists; D014663:Nasal Decongestants; D004366:Nonprescription Drugs; D013566:Sympathomimetics; D010665:Phenylpropanolamine; D004809:Ephedrine