Relationship between plasma concentrations of clonidine and mean arterial pressure during an accidental clonidine overdose.

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Abstract
The time course of toxicity in a 28 year old man following a 100 mg accidental overdose of clonidine hydrochloride is compared with the decline of plasma clonidine over 5 days. The concentration data were analyzed by nonlinear least squares regression, and fitted to a model which dissociated the blood pressure effects into pressor and depressor components. According to this analysis, there appeared to be two phases of toxicity over time‐a hypertensive, and a hypotensive phase. The hypotensive and the hypertensive phases may result primarily through differential stimulation of central alpha 2‐, alpha 1‐, and vascular post‐synaptic alpha 2‐adrenoceptors as plasma concentrations fall.