Drug overdose

From ArticleWorld

A drug overdose is when a chemical substance, usually a medicine or drug, is intentionally or unintentionally ingested, causing ill effect or death in the individual who has taking in the drug. While not technically a poisoning, a drug overdose poisons the individual by the sheer excessive amounts of the drug.

Types

The term “drug overdose” implies an intentional act and, in fact, many drug overdoses occur because the individual intends to take one’s life. Commonly used drugs in overdoses are prescription sleeping pills (such as benzodiazepines), acetaminophen and ibuprofen. Perhaps the most dangerous type of common intention overdose is that of acetaminophen. While a serious overdose does not cause significant immediate symptoms, irreversible liver damage is done and death occurs in a matter of days.

Unintentional overdoses often occur in young children who take adult pills that are left unattended. The most common type of childhood overdose is that of iron overdose when a child takes in a large number of children’s vitamins with iron. This can cause severe imbalances in the pH of the body and can result in death.

Overdoses that can be intentional or unintentional occur among those who use illicit drugs. Often there is the complete absence of standardization so that an individual can take what they think is a safe dose of heroin, for example, and unintentionally take too much, resulting in cardiorespiratory collapse and death.

Treatment

The treatment of a drug overdose is dependent upon the type of drug the person has ingested. General measures can include the use of ipecac syrup to induce vomiting and relieve the stomach of any undigested drug. Activated charcoal is also used to absorb the drug while it is in the intestines or absorb it through the intestinal wall.

Chelation or “binding” therapy is used to treat those who have taken excessive amounts of iron or other metal. Naloxone can be used to counteract the effects of opioids and flumazenil can rapidly undo the toxicity and respiratory suppression caused by benzodiazepines. Sometimes altering the degree of acidity of the blood can affect the way an overdosage of a drug works until the body clears itself of the drug.

Acetaminophen overdoses are treated using the traditional methods plus the use of an ingested or injectable form of a drug called Mucomyst®, Acetadote® or N-acetylcysteine. This “antidote” can help slow the systemic effects of acetaminophen toxicity so that the insult to the liver isn’t as abrupt as it otherwise would be, allowing for less chance of liver failure.