Definition
Acetaminophen overdose is the ingestion of supratherapeutic doses; this can be done as a one-time ingestion defined as acute overdose, or this can occur over extended periods of time, which is defined as chronic overdose.
Acute acetaminophen overdose causing toxicity is unlikely to occur in an acute ingestion in which less than 7.5 g is ingested in an adult or 140 mg/kg in a child [1].
Chronic acetaminophen overdose is the use of supratheraputic doses over an extended period of time. Nearly all reported cases of chronic acetaminophen toxicity involve patients who ingested supratherapeutic doses and had factors that potentially predisposed them to acetaminophen-induced hepatic injury [1]. There is no clearly defined amount of acetaminophen ingested or duration of ingestion to define a chronic overdose.
There are multiple factors that likely increase your risk for toxicity to acetaminophen; they include chronic alcoholism, inducers of the enzyme P450...
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Silverman, M.E., Shih, R.D. (2012). Acetaminophen Overdose. In: Vincent, JL., Hall, J.B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Intensive Care Medicine. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-00418-6_795
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