Abstract

CLONAZEPAM OVERDOSE IN PRE-EXISTING LIVER DISEASE - A WORD OF CAUTION

Ankit R. Mistry, Sapna D. Gupta and Supriya D. Malhotra*

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Abstract

Anxiety and insomnia are both important health problems, commonly encountered in general practice, which can result in significant impact on quality of life and functional impairment. Although treatment for these conditions can include benzodiazepines which are widely prescribed in general practice. BZDs like Clonazepam are used for acute management of the panic disorder, epilepsy, insomnia, tardive dyskinesia and non convulsive status epilepticus. This is a case of 25 years old young male patient with history of chronic liver disease who was brought to emergency department by his brother after he discovered he ingested 8-10 tablets of Clonazepam. After questioning, relatives admitted that Clonazepam was prescribed by general practitioner for sleep disturbance. However, after 15 days of hospitalization patient liver function values were still abnormal. This case report highlights a case of Clonazepam overdose and may provide information on cautions use of Clonazepam in case of pre-existing liver disease.

Keywords: Benzodiazepines, Clonazepam, Insomnia, Hepatic encephalopathy and Liver disease.