2008-03-03 Sarah dodges a bullet

Sarah pulled a food storage container into the master bath, climbed on the counter and found a bottle of baby ibuprofen. She ate up to 24 tablets ('Cannie!' she said.) Mindy called the poison control center who gave her instructions. Our prayers were frantic and fervent. Fortunately a tummy ache and lethargy were the only ill effects.




Had Sarah swallowed tylenol (acetominophen) it could have been fatal or resulted in liver failure. Of 348 children with liver failure, the leading cause was tylenol overdose, half of which were inadvertent.

"The cause of acute liver failure (ALF) in 348 children included acute acetaminophen toxicity (14%), metabolic disease (10%), autoimmune liver disease (6%), non-acetaminophen drug-related hepatotoxicity (5%), infections (6%), other diagnosed conditions (10%); 49% were indeterminate." J Pediatr. 2006 May;148(5):652-658

I'd suggest keeping tylenol under lock and key if you have to have it in the house at all.