Delayed akathisia and suicidal attempts following epidural droperidol infusion--a case report
Hung, Y.C.; Ho, Y.Y.; Shen, C.L.
Acta Anaesthesiologica Sinica 37(3): 151-154
1999
ISSN/ISBN: 0254-1319 PMID: 10609349 Document Number: 505885
Epidural administration of droperidol has been used to prevent postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) caused by opioids, but the adverse reactions were relatively neglected. We present a patient who received patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA) with bupivacaine-morphine-droperidol mixture for one and half days following hemorrhoidectomy, developed paroxysmal adverse reactions of akathisia, dysphoria, and suicidal attempts 3 days after the initiation of the treatment. The use of droperidol in PCEA for prevention of nausea and vomiting therefore needs to be re-evaluated according to the serious side effects occurring in our case.