High doses of Baclofen as suicide attempt in patients with alcohol use disorders - A serious concern.
Baclofen is increasingly being used as an off label anti-craving agent in alcohol use disorders in various parts of the world. The lack of proper recommendations regarding the dosage has important implications for safety in clinical management. In this context, we report two patients who were started with Baclofen as an anti-craving agent, and later developed serious complications following acute self inflicted overdose. We also highlight the important mechanisms of such complications and precautions that needs to be exerted while prescribing.
Centre of Addiction Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore 560029, India. Electronic address: hollabharath@gmail.com.
Bharath
B
Holla
Centre of Addiction Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore 560029, India.
Guru S
GS
Gowda
Centre of Addiction Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore 560029, India.
Lokesh
L
Prabhu
Centre of Addiction Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore 560029, India.
Sojan
S
Baby
Centre of Addiction Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore 560029, India.
Biju
B
Viswanath
Centre of Addiction Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore 560029, India.
Prabhat
P
Chand
Centre of Addiction Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore 560029, India.
Pratima
P
Murthy
D000328:Adult; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology; D001418:Baclofen / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects; D062787:Drug Overdose / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009125:Muscle Relaxants, Central / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects; D013406:Suicide, Attempted / Q000523:psychology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D009125:Muscle Relaxants, Central; D001418:Baclofen
Alcohol dependence; Anti-craving; Baclofen overdose; Suicide