Acetaminophen toxicity is quite a common form of poisoning worldwide, as people fail to realize the deadly effects of its overdose. An OTC (over-the-counter) pain medication, acetaminophen is quite safe when administered in proper therapeutic doses, and can be fatal if misused.
Its maximum daily dose capacity for a normal individual is four grams, while it is lesser for people suffering from some chronic diseases. Its deadly overdose occurs when someone accidently or intentionally consumes more than its recommended amount.
Symptoms of acetaminophen toxicity
The symptoms are divided into three stages, and if they are taken care of initially, one experiences minor symptoms in the later stages.
- First 24 hours: Paleness, tiredness, sweating, nausea, loss of appetite and stomachache.
- 24 to 72 hours: Along with aforementioned symptoms, a person experiences pain in upper right side, urinating less often than normal, dark yellow colored urine, pale skin and yellowish eyes.
- 72 to 96 hours after overdose: Fever, fainting, blood in urine, extreme weakness, blurred vision, headache, confusion, fast heartbeat and coma.
Treatment of acetaminophen toxicity
It is a serious problem, so leaving it untreated for long could result in a person’s death. One should start treatment as soon as possible and treatment depends upon the time a person has passed after an overdose. Besides, it depends whether an overdose was sudden or over a period. Symptoms usually subside within a week if there was no serious damage afflicted to one’s liver. Depending upon all these conditions, a patient may receive any of these following treatments:
- Monitoring
For patients who have relatively low levels of acetaminophen in their blood, doctors usually recommend monitoring at home.
- Activated charcoal
Doctors recommend activated charcoal to patients, so that it absorbs acetaminophen in stomach and prevent it from getting absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. It makes a patient vomit, thus, taking out all acetaminophen traces.
- Acetylcysteine
An antidote that is given to a patient by mouth or IV. It goes in and stops acetaminophen overdose from harming a patient.
- Prevention
One must pay heed to the doctor’s instructions, as they considerably reduce chances of acetaminophen poisoning. If you are taking combination medications, pay close attention to its ingredients. Avoid taking multiple medications that contain acetaminophen as one of is ingredients. Avoid heavy alcohol intake, as it can worsen acetaminophen poisoning.
Acetaminophen poisoning is very common because people underestimate its effects. It is of paramount importance to trace it in the very beginning, or else it might turn out fatal.
