title: Prolonged anticholinergic delirium following antihistamine overdose.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A case of anticholinergic delirium in a female adolescent is described, exploring the pharmacokinetic reasons for the prolonged time course and reviewing the management provided.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A 14 year old female hospitalised for depression ingested large quantities of promethazine and cyproheptadine. A severe anticholinergic delirium ensued which resolved after six days, much longer than the expected duration. The likely cause of the prolonged delirium was the interaction of promethazine and fluvoxamine through the inhibition of the CYP2D6 enzyme. The patient's young age, the severity of the poisoning and the use of drugs with anticholinergic properties to manage the delirium may also have contributed. The delirium may have been reversed had a cholinesterase inhibitor been provided soon after the overdose.
authors.affiliation: Mater Kids in Mind Inpatient Unit, Mater Children's Hospital, South Brisbane, Qld., Australia. james.scott@mater.org.au
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Scott
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pache
authors.forename: Greg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Keane
authors.forename: Helen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Buckle
authors.forename: Natalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: O'Brien
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D018680:Cholinergic Antagonists / Q000506:poisoning*; D003533:Cyproheptadine / Q000506:poisoning*; D065690:Cytochrome P-450 CYP2D6 Inhibitors; D003693:Delirium / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000175:diagnosis*; D062787:Drug Overdose; D005260:Female; D006634:Histamine H1 Antagonists / Q000506:poisoning*; D006801:Humans; D011398:Promethazine / Q000506:poisoning*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D018680:Cholinergic Antagonists; D065690:Cytochrome P-450 CYP2D6 Inhibitors; D006634:Histamine H1 Antagonists; D003533:Cyproheptadine; D011398:Promethazine