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An unusual case of fatal hypothermia involving topical diphenhydramine

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Abstract

Purpose

Diphenhydramine is an antihistamine drug widely used to alleviate symptoms caused by allergies and the common cold. Diphenhydramine-involved fatalities have been reported in the past but usually involving overdose by ingestion. We report a peculiar case of fatal hypothermia during non-winter season involving topical diphenhydramine.

Methods

A 23-year-old male with no known preexisting medical conditions was found dead in the bathroom of his apartment with a small amount of running water on his back. Postmortem examinations and toxicological analysis on blood and urine were performed.

Results

Color difference was apparent between the right and left cardiac blood. Wischnewski spots were observed in the gastric mucosa. Histological examination revealed no obvious findings that could attribute to serious cardiovascular events. Drug screening by gas chromatograph-tandem mass spectrometry (GC/MS/MS) detected diphenhydramine in blood and urine. Further quantification revealed the postmortem concentrations to be 0.44 μg/mL in blood and 2500 μg/mL in urine.

Conclusions

The cause of death was determined to be hypothermia. Diphenhydramine-induced drowsiness and possible intrinsic cardiac factor may have led to prolonged impaired consciousness, preventing his ability to escape from the running cold water leading to hypothermia and death.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Legal Medicine, Showa University School of Medicine, 1-5-8 Hatanodai, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, 142-8555, Japan

    Maiko Kusano, Masaya Fujishiro, Mari Hashimoto, Ming Jui Ng, Ryuji Yoshida, Shin-ichiro Narita, Akihiro Nakauchi, Keizo Sato, Yuichiro Tachi & Taka-aki Matsuyama

  2. Faculty of Human Care, Tohto University, 1-1 Hinodecho, Numazu, Shizuoka, 410-0032, Japan

    Akihiro Nakauchi

Authors
  1. Maiko Kusano
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  2. Masaya Fujishiro
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  3. Mari Hashimoto
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  4. Ming Jui Ng
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  5. Ryuji Yoshida
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  6. Shin-ichiro Narita
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  7. Akihiro Nakauchi
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  8. Keizo Sato
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  9. Yuichiro Tachi
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  10. Taka-aki Matsuyama
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Contributions

Postmortem examination was performed by TM, MF, MH, AN, and KS. Data analysis were performed by MK, MF, AN, SN, MH, MJN, and KS. The first draft of the manuscript was written by MK and all authors read and commented on the previous versions, and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Maiko Kusano.

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Conflict of interest

The authors have no financial or any other relations that could lead to conflicts of interest.

Ethics approval

All procedures performed in this study were in accordance with the ethical standards set by Showa University School of Medicine’s institutional review board, and the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments. The Department of Legal Medicine’s website also addresses the use of specimen data obtained from autopsy case for research purposes.

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Kusano, M., Fujishiro, M., Hashimoto, M. et al. An unusual case of fatal hypothermia involving topical diphenhydramine. Forensic Toxicol 41, 158–163 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11419-022-00637-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11419-022-00637-7

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