Sudden Sniffing Death

Bass, Millard

doi:10.1001/jama.1970.03170250031004

Cited by 298 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…The phenomenon of sudden cardiac death after inhalant abuse has been named ‘sudden sniffing death’ after the epidemic of 110 cardiac arrests due to the rising popularity of glue sniffing in the 1960s among American youths 4. The first report of sudden cardiac death after butane intoxication due to the inhalation of deodorant spray was reported in 1975 by Kamm 5.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cardiac arrest by inhalation of deodorant spray

Kramp¹,

Salih

Thomeer

et al. 2018

BMJ Case Reports

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Drug abuse by inhalation of volatile household product substances is uncommon, however, it can have devastating consequences. This case report describes the fatal outcome of deodorant inhalation by a 19-year-old patient in a detoxification clinic who developed a cardiac arrest after inhaling butane from a deodorant spray. Despite initial successful resuscitation, he developed a postanoxic encephalopathy with a status epilepticus resistant to extensive treatment. Inhalant abuse can be a cause of death in young patients.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cardiac arrest by inhalation of deodorant spray

Kramp¹,

Salih

Thomeer

et al. 2018

BMJ Case Reports

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“…It is important to be aware of aerosol abuse as fluorocarbons may cause cardiac arythmias, electroencephalographic changes, and death. 4 Problems have also been encountered in children; Brennan reported salbutamol aerosol abuse in five children aged 11 to 13. Three of the five also took beclomethasone aerosols but did not abuse them.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aerosol treatment abuse.

O’Callaghan¹,

Milner²

1988

Archives of Disease in Childhood

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SUMMARY A 4 year old boy with excellent inhaler technique was found to be abusing his salbutamol and beclomethasone dipropionate inhalers. This resulted in aggressive behaviour and probable hallucinations.Glue sniffing, inhalation of domestic aerosols, and using illegal drugs are becoming common among teenagers but children of preschool age rarely arouse suspicion. We report the case of a 4 year old boy who abused his salbutamol and beclomethasone aerosols.Case report A 4 year old boy with asthma was referred to this hospital because he was using his salbutamol and beclomethasone aerosols too often. His three brothers and his father also used beclomethasone and salbutamol aerosols regularly.At the age of 31/2 he became intolerant of his salbutamol Rotahaler capsules and was given salbutamol and beclomethasone dipropionate aerosols. Surprisingly, his technique of using the inhalers was perfect, and we made a video recording of it.During the previous three weeks at school he had demanded his salbutamol aerosol up to 10 times a day. Administration at home had also increased despite minimal asthmatic symptoms, and he had become increasingly aggressive. His mother had noticed that over a period of three days, four beclomethasone inhalers had been taken from the cupboard and were empty. The following day the precocious 4 year old was found underneath the cupboard, having inhaled one complete aerosol of beclomethasone and half way through his second. He was noted to be agitated, and repeatedly tried to push an imaginary person away from his left ear.Three months before this, his mother had noted similar changes in behaviour with increased demands for aerosols. Four aerosols were missing from the house. Putting the blame on her older boys she moved the aerosols to a different cupboard: the boy's behaviour improved. On this occasion a change was made to salbutamol and beclomethasone Rotacaps with no ill effects, and he had no obvious withdrawal symptoms. DiscussionPressurised aerosols had been effective in treating this boy's severe asthma and we were amazed at his competence in using them. His increased use of them at school may well be ascribed to attention seeking, but subsequent draining of aerosols secretly at home was not. As his craving disappeared after changing to a dry powder system, it seems that his craving was not for the salbutamol or the beclomethasone, but for the fluorocarbons used as propellants.In older children and adults the patient controls his or her own treatment, and monitoring of drug consumption can be difficult; there have been reports of abuse of salbutamol and beclomethasone aerosols in adults.' The effects of abuse ranged from euphoria, increase in self confidence, and hallucinations to a report of a grand mal fit.2 These effects were also attributed to the fluorocarbons used as propellants. It is important to be aware of aerosol abuse as fluorocarbons may cause cardiac arythmias, electroencephalographic changes, and death.4 Problems have also been encountered in children; Brennan reported ...

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“…Of particular concern is that even acute inhalation can lead to life threatening conditions due to poor oxygenation, cardiac arrhythmias and other complications associated with hypokalemia. “Sudden sniffing death” has been documented since the 1970s [13, 14] and can be caused by cardiac arrhythmias, hypothermia, hypoxia or a combination of these factors [15]. …”

Section: Effects: the Clinical Evidencementioning

confidence: 99%

Review of Toluene Actions: Clinical Evidence, Animal Studies, and Molecular Targets

Cruz

Rivera-García

Woodward

2014

Journal of Drug and Alcohol Research

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It has long been known that individuals will engage in voluntary inhalation of volatile solvents for their rewarding effects. However, research into the neurobiology of these agents has lagged behind that of more commonly used drugs of abuse such as psychostimulants, alcohol and nicotine. This imbalance has begun to shift in recent years as the serious effects of abused inhalants, especially among children and adolescents, on brain function and behavior have become appreciated and scientifically documented. In this review, we discuss the physicochemical and pharmacological properties of toluene, a representative member of a large class of organic solvents commonly used as inhalants. This is followed by a brief summary of the clinical and pre-clinical evidence showing that toluene and related solvents produce significant effects on brain structures and processes involved in the rewarding aspects of drugs. This is highlighted by tables highlighting toluene’s effect on behaviors (reward, motor effects, learning, etc.) and cellular proteins (e.g. voltage and ligand-gated ion channels) closely associated the actions of abused substances. These sections demonstrate not only the significant progress that has been made in understanding the neurobiological basis for solvent abuse but also reveal the challenges that remain in developing a coherent understanding of this often overlooked class of drugs of abuse.

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Sudden Sniffing Death

Cited by 298 publications

References 13 publications

Cardiac arrest by inhalation of deodorant spray

Cardiac arrest by inhalation of deodorant spray

Aerosol treatment abuse.

Review of Toluene Actions: Clinical Evidence, Animal Studies, and Molecular Targets

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