An electrophysiological study of the intermediate syndrome of organophosphate poisoning

Abstract

Acute organophosphate (OP) poisoning is commonly seen in emergency medicine. Neurologists must be alert to detect neuromuscular transmission failure and other neurological complications that follow OP poisoning. We report a 37-year-old male with acute OP poisoning to emphasize the electrophysiological abnormalities during the intermediate syndrome (IMS). Motor nerve conduction studies revealed that a single nerve stimulation evoked a repetitive compound muscle action potential, whereas repetitive nerve stimulation resulted in a combination of a decrement-increment pattern and a repetitive fade response. Thus, electrophysiological studies can be used to monitor patients with IMS, and these test results correlate well with clinical findings in acute OP poisoning.