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Previous Volume 331:1310-1312 November 10, 1994 Number 19 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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To the Editor: The suggestion by Cheung et al. (June 30 issue)¹ that an acetaminophen overdose in an alcoholic should be treated with acetylcysteine regardless of the serum acetaminophen concentration is unfounded and contrary to the available evidence. The literature includes well over 10,000 cases of acetaminophen overdose,^2,3 and the accumulated experience worldwide must involve well over 100,000 cases. Despite this extensive experience, we are unaware of any other bona fide examples of the phenomenon described by Cheung and colleagues, who reported a case of fatal acetaminophen-induced hepatic failure in an alcoholic patient despite a "nontoxic" serum acetaminophen concentration.

One . . . [Full Text of this Article]

References

Related Letters:

Acetaminophen Treatment Nomogram
Cheung L., Potts R. G., Meyer K. C.
Extract | Full Text  
N Engl J Med 1994; 330:1907-1908, Jun 30, 1994. Correspondence

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• Lee, W. M. (1995). Drug-Induced Hepatotoxicity. NEJM 333: 1118-1127 [Full Text]