Hyperthermia Syndrome and Medications Used to Treat It

Abstract

Extreme increases in body temperature, or hyperthermia, can be fatal and can be brought on by illegal or prescribed medicines that act at several different levels of the nervous system. The characteristic clinical condition of hyperthermia, skeletal muscular hyper-metabolism, stiffness or rhabdomyolysis, autonomic dysfunction, and altered mental status ranging from catatonic stupor to coma has been linked to a number of psychotropic medication classes and combinations. In order to prevent significant morbidity and mortality, clinicians must be very suspicious of these relatively rare drug-induced side effects and educated about how to manage them. Despite their similar appearance, these illnesses are caused by quite distinct causes, and while careful medical care and the withdrawal or restoration of potentially triggering medications are necessary, specific therapies may differ. There may be a common "thermic stress syndrome" that is brought on in human and animal models by a range of pharmacological or environmental stressors, according to theoretical conjectures based on clinical similarities regarding common mechanisms and shared genetic predispositions underlying these syndromes. No improvement in clinical outcomes has been linked to the use of antipyretics. In a recent pilot study, therapeutic hyperthermia brought on by physical warmth was examined, and the group that experienced the hyperthermia fared better in terms of survival. In conclusion, the available research supports at least a temperature tolerance strategy for non-neurocritical patients, however there is currently insufficient evidence to justify the use of therapeutic hyperthermia outside of clinical trials.