DYSTONIC REACTION FOLLOWING RECOMMENDED USE OF A COLD SYRUP

A healthy 3-year-old boy presented to our emergency department with su dden onset of abnormal movement. This patient had been treated for 2 d ays with conventional doses of an antihistamine/decongestant cold prep aration for upper respiratory infection symptoms. The child was confus ed and restless, with posturing of limbs. Cranial nerve function was i ntact. Gastric lavage yielded an aspirate the same color as the cold s yrup the child had ingested. A diagnosis of dystonic reaction was made , and the child was treated with benztropine, which effected resolutio n of his symptoms. This is the first reported case in the literature o f dystonia induced by an antihistamine and treated with benztropine.