Automobile antifreeze consists almost entirely of ethylene glycol into toxic substances, researchers report in the March 18th of The England Journal of Medicine.
Antifreeze poisoning "caan kill you or cause significant harm, but this antidote works spectacularly well", said lead author Dr. Jeffrey Brent, an associate professor of medicine, surgery & pediatrics at the iniversary of Colorado Health Science Center in Denver.
The food & drug Administration approved fomepizole as a result of the new study findings, he noted.
In thier study, Brent & colleages administered an average of 3.5 doses of intravenous fomepizole to 19 people with
ethanol glycol poisoning. They report that 18 patients survived without any serious side effects, & the one patient who died did not get to the hospital in time for any treatment to be effective. Antifreeze is usually ingested by mistake, as a suicide attempt, or a cheap substitute for alcohol. Experts estimate that there are about 5,000 cases of antifreeze ingestion each year in the U.S.
Current treatments for antifreeze poisoning leave much to be desired, according to the study authors.
For example, most patients are treated with high doses of ethanol (alcohol). The therapy can result in drunkeness, a dangerous dip in blood sugar level (hypoglycemia) &/or liver poisoning. Additionally, such treatment requires intensive monitoring, & most of these patients require hemodialyse, the researchers note.
"The drug works better & has none of the complications associated with ethynol treatment", Brent said.
Still, about 17 patients in the new study needed hemodialyse. "If you get it early, treatment with this antidote should eliminate the need for hemodialyse," he said. The new treatment may also be useful for pets who accidently consume antifreeze, Brent added. In an accompanying editorial, Dr. Dag Jacobsen of the Ullevaal University Hospital in Oslo, Norway, points out that although fomepizole is the better choice for ethylene glycol poisoning, ethanol treatment is cheaper.
Source: The New England Journal of Medicine.
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)
