Abstract
The dead body of a 44-year-old woman, previously known for depression and alcoholism, has been discovered at her place of residence by her husband. A forensic autopsy has been carried out. The results indicated unspecific histological lesions (alveolar oedema, liver steatosis and interstitial nephritis) but did not reveal any apparent cause of death. Several boxes of medicines have been found near the body, justifying a toxicological analysis. This has been performed on peripheral blood and urine samples using liquid chromatography with diode array and mass spectrometric detections, in conjunction with gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. Ethanol has been found (1.24 g/L in blood, 2.63 g/L in urine and 1.33 g/kg in gastric content), as well as therapeutic concentrations of meprobamate (14.1 mg/L) and low concentrations of nordazepam (0.12 mg/L) in blood. On the other hand, particularly high levels of labetalol, a widely used β-blocker, have been found both in blood (1.7 mg/L) and urine (20.2 mg/L), which led us to measure labetalol levels in available viscera samples (liver, heart, kidney, and lung) and gastric content. Measured concentrations were 14.2 μg/g, 7.8 μg/g, 5.4 μg/g, 5.2 μg/g and 31.1 μg/g, respectively. We describe here the first report of a fatal intoxication attributed to labetalol that is linked to its acute toxicity, with tissue distribution of this β-blocker.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
