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A case of barbiturate poisoning with a readily-accessible laboratory reagent
1Pennsylvania State University, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey 17033.
Journal of Toxicology. Clinical Toxicology
|January 1, 1992
Abstract:
We report a patient with barbiturate intoxication due to surreptitious ingestion of barbital buffer from a clinical laboratory. Although detected in the urine toxicology screening test using an immunologic technique, this agent was not recognized in the more specific serum analysis done by gas-liquid chromatography. Barbital buffer is an effective long-acting sedative-hypnotic and is widely available from the laboratory shelf. It may not be reported by very specific analytical methods.