Related Experiment Videos
Acute accidental overdosage of haloperidol in children
I Yoshida1, Y Sakaguchi, T Matsuishi
1Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, Kurume University School of Medicine, Japan.
Insights
Accidental haloperidol overdosage in children caused acute toxicity, including consciousness disturbances and tremors. Haloperidol was detected in serum, with a mean half-life of 18.6 hours in pediatric patients.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Toxicology
- Clinical Pharmacology
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Haloperidol is a potent antipsychotic medication.
- Accidental overdosage can lead to significant adverse effects, particularly in children.
- Understanding toxicity profiles is crucial for safe pediatric prescribing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To detail the clinical manifestations and laboratory findings of haloperidol overdosage in pediatric patients.
- To quantify serum haloperidol levels and determine its half-life in children following acute toxicity.
- To inform clinical management and prevention strategies for haloperidol toxicity in children.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective case series analysis of 24 children experiencing accidental haloperidol overdosage.
- Clinical assessment of neurological and physical signs of toxicity.
- Laboratory investigations including blood haloperidol levels, liver function tests, and electrocardiograms (ECG).
Main Results:
- All 24 children exhibited disturbances in consciousness; other common symptoms included tremors and oculogyric crises.
- Laboratory findings revealed transient thrombocytosis in some cases and prolonged QT interval on ECG in 2 of 8 children.
- Haloperidol was detected in 11 of 18 children, with a maximum serum level of 28.9 ng/ml and a mean half-life of 18.6 hours.
Conclusions:
- Haloperidol overdosage in children can result in a range of acute toxic effects, primarily neurological.
- Serum haloperidol levels and prolonged half-life highlight the potential for sustained toxicity.
- These findings underscore the importance of careful dosing and monitoring in pediatric patients receiving haloperidol.
Abstract:
We report the details of an accidental overdosage of haloperidol in 24 children in one hospital in Kyushu, Japan. Evidence of acute toxicity included disturbances in consciousness (24/24), tremors in the extremities (16/24), an oculogyric or similar crisis (14/24), dysarthria (9/17), drooling (8/24), akathisia (6/20), hyperreflexia (6/24) and opisthotonos (3/24). Laboratory examinations revealed late-onset transient thrombocytosis (5/24), elevated AST and GPT (1/24) and abnormal ECG with prolonged QT interval in 2 of 8 children. We detected haloperidol in 11 of 18 children whose blood was specifically examined within four days after the final haloperidol administration. The maximum serum haloperidol level was 28.9 ng/ml. The mean half-life of haloperidol in the serum of five children (age range 2-10 years) was 18.6 +/- 12.2 h (mean +/- SD) (range 9.1-39.4 h).