Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0018681 (headache)
 56,091 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) is contained in about 106 products, over half of which are available over-the-counter (OTC). Most are cough/cold remedies; nine are OTC diet aids. More than nine million Americans were using OTC diet aids in 1981, making PPA the fifth most used drug in the United States, responsible for over $200 million in revenues. The safety of PPA remains controversial. Although most controlled studies indicate minimal pressor effects with recommended doses, adverse drug reactions (ADRs) continue to be documented. Since 1965, 142 ADRs have been reported in 85 studies, 69% of these in North America. Many such cases may go unrecognized. About two thirds of all ADRs occurred in females and in patients under 30. Of ADRs attributed to legitimately sold PPA products, 85% occurred after consumption of OTC products versus only 15% after prescription drugs. The PPA product often contained combination ingredients, or PPA was consumed along with additional drugs. An overdose of PPA was taken in about a third of the cases. After ingestion of non-overdose amounts, 82% of the ADRs were severe. The most frequent side effects involved symptoms compatible with acute hypertension, with severe headache the most common complaint. Twenty-four intracranial hemorrhages, eight seizures, and eight deaths (most due to stroke) were associated with PPA ingestion. We have summarized these data in an effort to alert clinicians to the prevalence of usage of PPA products and the potential for adverse effects. In patients who present with elevated blood pressure or signs of acute hypertension, especially hypertensive encephalopathy of undetermined origin, we recommend inquiry about recent ingestion of PPA-containing diet aids and cough/cold products and suggest having such patients remain upright rather than supine.
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PMID:Adverse drug effects attributed to phenylpropanolamine: a review of 142 case reports. 220 Feb 64

Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) is the major ingredient in more than 70 over-the-counter preparations including diet pills, nasal decongestants, and the legal "look-alike" stimulants. Structurally and functionally similar to amphetamine and ephedrine, PPA has recently been associated with several neurological manifestations including psychosis, stroke, severe headache, seizures, and intracerebral hematoma. We report a case of intracerebral hematoma and subarachnoid hemorrhage in a young woman with angiographic and biopsy-proven vasculitis of the central nervous system (CNS) induced by PPA in her diet pills. From review of the literature, we distinguish drug-induced vasculitis as a separate entity from primary CNS vasculitis, both clinically and pathologically. This report should alert physicians, in general, to this potentially fatal side effect of PPA, a commonly used over-the-counter drug. Also, neurosurgeons in particular should consider the possibility of drug-induced vasculitis when faced with cases of intracerebral or subarachnoid hemorrhage without apparent cause.
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PMID:Phenylpropanolamine: an over-the-counter drug causing central nervous system vasculitis and intracerebral hemorrhage. Case report and review. 295 31

Hypertension, severe headache, and grand mal seizures developed in a 13-year-old girl after ingestion of one nonprescription diet pill containing phenylpropanolamine and caffeine. This case is at least the sixth report of seizures with phenylpropanolamine use in children or adolescents. Phenylpropanolamine ingestion must be included in the differential diagnosis of young patients, particularly adolescents, in whom acute neurological symptoms develop.
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PMID:Phenylpropanolamine-associated CNS complications in children and adolescents. 642 18

Eleven patients had neurologic symptoms after taking "look-alike" pills thought to contain amphetamines but actually containing phenylpropanolamine. Phenylpropanolamine, a nonregulated drug, is structurally and functionally similar to amphetamines. Acute onset of headache, psychiatric symptoms, or seizures in young patients may be due to phenylpropanolamine use.
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PMID:Neurologic complications of phenylpropanolamine use. 668 4

Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) is the major ingredient of many over-the-counter cold remedies and diet pills. Use or abuse of PPA may cause hemorrhagic stroke or cerebral vasculitis similar to the clinical and angiographic picture associated with amphetamine use or abuse. We report a 32-year-old Taiwanese women who developed sudden onset of severe headache, nausea and vomiting on the seventh day of oral ingestion of 75 mg PPA per day. Cerebral angiograms showed multiple areas of alternating focal constriction and dilatation ("beading" appearance) in the anterior and posterior cerebral arteries consistent with cerebral arteritis. This case should alert medical practitioners to the potential hazards of over-the-counter drugs like PPA.
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PMID:Cerebral arteritis associated with oral use of phenylpropanolamine: report of a case. 761 35