Poisoning by Drugs, Medicaments and Biological Substances Codexery

Digoxin toxicity

Poisoning from digoxin or foxglove, causing cardiac and visual disturbances.

Digoxin toxicity is poisoning from excessive digoxin or from plants like foxglove that contain similar substances.[1] Heart rhythm disturbances that are either excessively rapid or excessively slow are possible complications.[1]

Quick Facts

First described
1785
First described by
William Withering

Facts from the source article.

Key facts and history

In Australia in 2012, about 140 cases were documented, a decrease by half since 1994 due to reduced digoxin use.[2] A single large overdose can trigger toxicity, or it can develop slowly while a person is on long-term therapy.[3] Diagnosis routinely involves an electrocardiogram, and measuring blood levels is only helpful if done more than six hours after the last dose.[3] William Withering provided the first description of this condition in 1785.[2]

When someone ingests a large amount acutely, nausea, vertigo, and vomiting are noticeable symptoms.[4]

What the cited sources add

Digoxin toxicity was reported in 1851 patients, with 25 deaths, according to that same report.[5] A low level of potassium in the body can increase the risk of digitalis toxicity, as stated by the MedlinePlus entry.[6] Digitalis toxicity may also develop in people who take digoxin and have a low level of magnesium.[6] Any problem that affects kidney function, including dehydration, makes digitalis toxicity more likely.[6]

In severe cases, medicines called digoxin-specific antibodies may be prescribed.[6] The 2017 American Association of Poison Control Centers report indicated that cardiovascular medications were involved in over 107,000 toxicity cases, which represented 4.24% of all reported cases, and accounted for nearly 8% of fatalities.[5]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Digoxin toxicity" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Pincus, "Management of digoxin toxicity.", Australian Prescriber, February 2016, p. 18–20; Palatnick, "Emergency department management of calcium-channel blocker, beta blocker, and digoxin toxicity.", Emergency Medicine Practice, February 2014, p. 1–19; quiz 19–20; Pincus, "Management of digoxin toxicity.", Australian Prescriber, February 2016, p. 18–20; Pincus, "Management of digoxin toxicity.", Australian Prescriber, February 2016, p. 18–20; Pincus, "Management of digoxin toxicity.", Australian Prescriber, February 2016, p. 18–20 (we en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Digoxin toxicity" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Pincus, "Management of digoxin toxicity.", Australian Prescriber, February 2016, p. 18–20; Pincus, "Management of digoxin toxicity.", Australian Prescriber, February 2016, p. 18–20; Palatnick, "Emergency department management of calcium-channel blocker, beta blocker, and digoxin toxicity.", Emergency Medicine Practice, February 2014, p. 1–19; quiz 19–20; Feldman, "Heart Failure: Pharmacologic Management", John Wiley & Sons, 2008, p. 26 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Digoxin toxicity" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Pincus, "Management of digoxin toxicity.", Australian Prescriber, February 2016, p. 18–20; Pincus, "Management of digoxin toxicity.", Australian Prescriber, February 2016, p. 18–20; Gheorghiade, "Contemporary use of digoxin in the management of cardiovascular disorders.", Circulation, 30 May 2006, p. 2556–64; Palatnick, "Emergency department management of calcium-channel blocker, beta blocker, and digoxin toxicity.", Emergency Medicine Practice, February 2014, p. 1–19; quiz 19–20; Pincus, "Management of digoxin toxicity.", Australian P en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Digoxin toxicity" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ma, "Electrocardiographic manifestations: digitalis toxicity.", The Journal of Emergency Medicine, February 2001, p. 145–52 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Palatnick, "Emergency department management of calcium-channel blocker, beta blocker, and digoxin toxicity.", Emergency Medicine Practice, February 2014, p. 1–19; quiz 19–20. facts only, no text reused. ebmedicine.net
  6. Dugdale, "Digitalis toxicity", MedlinePlus. facts only, no text reused. medlineplus.gov

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Digoxin toxicity (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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