Netherlands Journal of Critical Care Accepted December 2013 CASE REPORT Diagnosis of serotonin syndrome in the intensive care population: a case report X. Zuidema1, I. Wilting2, M. Kromkamp3, J. Kesecioglu1 1Department of Intensive Care Medicine, Division of Anesthesiology, Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine Department of Intensive Care Medicine, University Medical Center Utrecht, the Netherlands 2Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Division Laboratory and Pharmacy, University Medical Center Utrecht, the Netherlands 3Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Utrecht, the Netherlands Correspondence X. Zuidema – e-mail:
[email protected] Keywords – Serotonin syndrome, ICU, diagnosis Abstract by rapid treatment, however, is crucial, since a significant ICU admission due to serotonin syndrome (SS) is well proportion of SS cases (17%) lead to a worse outcome, with a described in the literature. However, development of SS during mortality rate of up to 0.2%.3 SS is mostly seen as a result of ICU admission has not been reported to date. We present a inadvertent interactions between serotonin-active drugs and/ patient in whom SS was suspected during ICU admission. or intentional self-poisoning.4,5 We describe a patient who was SS may be induced by either increased serotonergic activity suspected of SS during ICU admission, whilst continuing a or by lowering the cerebral serotonin sensitivity threshold. medication regime that included citalopram and amitriptyline. SS is not easily recognized, especially in ICU populations because it can easily be confused with clinical deterioration Case report or other drug-related toxidromes. SS is a potentially fatal A fifty-five year old somnolent male was admitted to the clinical syndrome, which requires rapid diagnosis and timely Department of Internal Medicine of a large academic teaching treatment.