A case that utilizes a pharmacokinetic approach to evaluate the need for withdrawal prophylaxis after a phenobarbital overdose is presented. To date, the practitioner has had to rely on an accurate drug-use history to predict which patients may be at risk for withdrawal symptoms. Since this information is often difficult to obtain, some other means of identifying potential withdrawal-syndrome patients would be useful. This case describes the successful use of kinetically determined parameters, the elimination rate constant and half-life, in predicting withdrawal potential. This easily used kinetic approach may provide practitioners with a useful tool for predicting those patients at risk for withdrawal symptoms following phenobarbital overdose.
This report describes a patient with life-threat-ening phenobarbital overdose, treated successfullywith hemodialysis, using a high-flux, high-efficiencydialyzer and high blood flow rates. The rapid fall inphenobarbital levels and the dramatic clinical re-sponse noted during the procedure supports thistechnique as an effective therapy in such patients.
Successful use of haemodialysis to treat phenobarbital overdose