Abstract

Nicotine poisoning arising from the use of nicotine patches is rare. However, because nicotine patches are classified as an OTC drug, the risk of misuse or abuse is increasing. Nicotine poisoning using nicotine patches shows an unusual clinical presentation compared to that from oral ingestion of multiple doses of nicotine. We present a case of misused nicotine patches that cause a nicotine poisoning. A thirty-nine year-old healthy man visited the ER with complaints of an intermittent cramping abdominal pain with nausea and vomiting. Upon physical examination, there were no specific findings except increased bowel sounds, and the patient's initial laboratory findings were also unremarkable except for an increased bilirubin level. CT revealed a mild degree of fatty liver. The patient's symptoms did not improve any further with conservative management. During his ED stay, we meticulously took his history again, and we discovered that he had used nicotine patches for three days, six days before admission, and had misused the nicotine patches as NSAID patches. The patient's diagnosis of nicotine poisoning was confirmed by a urine cotinine level ten times the normal value. After a 12-hour stay in the ED, his symptoms disappeared without any specific management.

• Keywords: Nicotine;OTC;Poisoning;;