Citation

Yamamoto H, Takayasu T, Nosaka M, Kimura A, Ishida Y, Kawaguchi T, Fukami M, Okada M, Kondo T. Leg. Med. (Elsevier) 2017; 24: 12-18.

Affiliation

Department of Forensic Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama, Japan. Electronic address: kondot@wakayama-med.ac.jp.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Japanese Society of Legal Medicine, Publisher Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.legalmed.2016.11.002

PMID

28081785

Abstract

A fatal case of acute nifedipine intoxication in a two-year-old boy is presented. The boy accidentally orally ingested an unknown amount of his grandfather's nifedipine (40mg/tablet), mistaking it for a ramune confectionery. Despite intensive medical treatment, his death was confirmed at 31h after the accidental ingestion. The forensic autopsy revealed that there were neither pathological alterations or injuries in all of the organs. Toxicologically, nifedipine could be detected at the concentrations of 0.463, 0.669 and 13.0μg/g in cardiac blood, peripheral blood and stomach contents, respectively. These concentrations were evaluated as fatal levels, and the cause of death was diagnosed as acute nifedipine intoxication. Recently, the number of infants and children who accidentally ingest drugs in the home is increasing. This case report prompts forensic pathologists and toxicologists to emphasize that children are always exposed to the risk of accidental drug ingestion in daily life.

Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

Accidental ingestion; Autopsy; Infant; Nifedipine; Toxicology