Citation

Treacy SA. J. Can. Soc. Forensic Sci. 1994; 27(1): 43-46.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1994, Canadian Society of Forensic Science, Publisher Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/00085030.1994.10757024

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The following is a case report involving the death of a 48 year old woman with a history of multiple allergies. No anatomical cause of death was found at autopsy. Toxicological analysis of the postmortem blood identified terfenadine, a non-sedating antihistamine, and its two major metabolites, as well as trace amounts of diphenhydramine and lidocaine. Blood concentrations were: terfenadine--0.44 mg/L, terfenadine carboxylate--3.07 mg/L, and azacyclonol--0.89 mg/L. The medical examiner ruled the cause of death to be a self-ingested overdose of terfenadine. This terfenadine concentration in blood appears to be the highest reported in the literature to date.