SULFHEMOGLOBINEMIA FOLLOWING HABITUAL USE OF ACETANILID

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
There are numerous reports in the older medical literature of cyanosis following the prolonged ingestion of acetanilid;1 the cyanosis was assumed to be due to the presence of methemoglobin. In 1930, Harrop and Waterfield called attention to the fact that acetanilid poisoning could cause sulfhemoglobinemia.2 There are a few other reports in the literature of single instances in which this fact was demonstrated.3 Nevertheless, cyanosis with acetanilid poisoning is still frequently ascribed to methemoglobinemia. Differentiation between the two pigments is relatively easy by methods now available and is of considerable practical importance, particularly with regard to therapy. Methemoglobin is rapidly reversed to normal hemoglobin by the enzyme systems in the red blood cell as soon as the offending poison is removed. Treatment of methemoglobinemia of a mild degree is, therefore, often unnecessary. In severe cases, methylene blue (1 to 2 mg. per kilogram), given orally or intravenously,

This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit: