The symptoms of aminophylline poisoning turned out to be like this

Aminophylline is a drug used to treat diseases such as bronchial asthma and asthmatic bronchitis. However, because its effective blood concentration and toxic blood concentration are very close, it often causes poisoning in people, seriously endangering human health. If not treated in time, it may even lead to death. Therefore, it is particularly important to understand the symptoms of aminophylline poisoning and to achieve early detection and early treatment.

Early symptoms of aminophylline poisoning include burning pain in the upper abdomen, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, polyuria, headache, flushing, thirst, etc. In more serious cases, there are irritability, mental confusion, syncope, mental excitement or inhibition, palpitations, decreased blood pressure and rapid breathing. In severe cases, there are muscle tremors, epileptic seizures, dilated pupils, fever, tachycardia, and heart rhythm disorders. Death may occur due to ventricular fibrillation or respiratory or circulatory system failure.

Excessive dosage or too fast intravenous administration is the most common cause of excessive blood concentration of aminophylline and poisoning. There are many factors that affect the metabolism and clearance of aminophylline. The dose that causes poisoning varies in different situations and among different patients, and there are large individual differences. The half-life of aminophylline can be prolonged in the elderly or in patients with poor heart, liver, or kidney function, shock, dehydration, acid-base imbalance, severe viral infection, or certain drugs (such as macrolides). Even a small dose can result in excessive blood drug concentrations that can cause poisoning.

Aminophylline should be used with caution in children. Because children's excretion and detoxification functions are not yet perfect, their clearance rate is naturally very low. An improper dosage can easily cause poisoning, which can be life-threatening in severe cases. The dosage for children should be calculated based on body weight. Data show that if >5 mg/kg body weight is taken at a time, poisoning can occur within 0.5-1 hour. In severe cases, heart failure or cerebral edema may occur and lead to death.

Once symptoms of poisoning appear, the patient and family members should first be asked whether they have taken the aminophylline correctly, and whether other drugs that affect the metabolism of the aminophylline are used in combination, to rule out poisoning symptoms caused by other drugs, to monitor whether the blood concentration of aminophylline is significantly higher than the normal range, and to see whether the poisoning symptoms are relieved or disappear after stopping the medication. If severe poisoning symptoms occur, emergency treatment should be given immediately.