Update: the clinical importance of acetaminophen hepatotoxicity in non-alcoholic and alcoholic subjects.
Acetaminophen (paracetamol) is one of the most commonly used over-the-counter medications. Taken in doses greater than 150 mg/kg/day (>10 g), it usually causes acute liver failure. The authors review mainly the management of acetaminophen toxicity in both users and nonusers of alcohol. Chronic alcoholics are a special subgroup, who risk serious toxicity when taking acetaminophen, even in therapeutic doses. The acetaminophen-alcohol interaction is complex, because acute and chronic ethanol have opposite effects. This review also considers physiological and clinical changes, as well as the diagnosis and treatment of acetaminophen poisoning.
Tanaka
E
E
Institute of Community Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba-shi, Ibaraki-ken 305-8575, Japan. einosuke@md.tsukuba.ac.jp
Yamazaki
K
K
Misawa
S
S
D000082:Acetaminophen / Q000633:toxicity*; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000150:complications*; D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects*
D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic; D000082:Acetaminophen