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05-10-2006, 08:53 AM
05/09/2006
Seneca Ridge students overdose on cough medicine
By Jana Renn
Dextromethorphan, when used properly, acts as a cough suppressant. Taken in excessive amounts, it can have the effects of a psychoactive drug.
Most parents understand the dangers of alcohol, tobacco products and illegal drugs. They talk to their children early and often about the importance of staying away from these substances.
What they may not know is that abusing over-the-counter drugs can be just as dangerous, as evidenced by an incident that took place May 3 in a Loudoun County school.
Five teenagers were taken to area hospitals from Seneca Ridge Middle School in Sterling, exhibiting high blood-pressure levels from taking a nonprescription cold medication, according to Loudoun County Sheriff's spokesman Kraig Troxell.
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The teens, ranging in age from 12 to 14, allegedly took Coricidin HBP Cough and Cold medication, Troxell said.
Wayde Byard, spokesman for Loudoun County Public Schools, said Seneca Ridge received an anonymous tip from the community about 11 a.m. on May 3 that a student had brought pills to school.
An assistant principal went to that student's classroom and informed the teacher, Byard said, and the student was then taken to the school's health clinic. A few minutes later, another student was brought to the clinic.
A Sheriff's school resource officer has determined that possibly seven students were involved. Four females and one male were transported to area hospitals, while two other students possibly involved had no symptoms, Troxell said.
The Sheriff's Office is still investigating the incident, but Troxell said most of the ramifications will come through the school system.
Byard credited Kathy Dunkin, the nurse at Seneca Ridge, with making the correct diagnosis and taking immediate action. She called 911 and had the paramedics there when the other students began arriving at the clinic.
All of the students were released from the hospital that day, and two returned to school to pick up their books.
Byard said the school is now in the disciplinary stage of the incident.
"Wednesday, our first priority was making sure the kids were safe and taken care of," Byard said. "Right now we want to act in a judicious manner, get back to the beginning and figure out exactly what happened."
Young people who take excessive amounts of cold and cough medicine consume high doses of dextromethorphan, one of the active ingredients in medications like Coricidin, Robitussin, Zicam and Delsym.
When taken in recommended doses, dextromethorphan acts as a cough suppressant. When abused, it can act as a dissociative psychedelic drug and cause hallucinations.
"That's in part why some people are looking to abuse it," said Dr. David Goodfriend, director of the Loudoun County Health Department.
Goodfriend added that many who want to abuse the drug look for dextromethorphan in pill form, such as Coricidin, because it is easier to ingest several pills than to drink two bottles of Robitussin.
He suspects that teens may abuse cold and cough medicine because they have easier access to it than to alcohol. The medicine is readily available at pharmacies, and students who are caught with it do not seem to raise suspicions, especially in winter when colds are rampant.
Goodfriend noted several things parents should look for if they suspect their children of abusing cold and cough medicine.
Dextromethorphan can cause users to appear intoxicated and to have trouble walking.
Other active ingredients can have different effects. The decongestants sometimes present can cause high blood pressure, chest pain and headaches. The antihistamines sometimes present can cause symptoms like dry mouth and fatigue.
High amounts of antihistamines can also decrease the ability to sweat, so in hot conditions the child may appear very red.
"In general, for most people, if they abuse cold and flu medications, these symptoms will come about," Goodfriend said.
He advises parents to always keep an eye on what their children are doing and to know how they normally act.
"The first indication in knowing if your child is using any type of intoxicant is in seeing how different they are acting."
http://www.timescommunity.com/site/tab1.cf...id=506035&rfi=6 (http://www.timescommunity.com/site/tab1.cfm?newsid=16612173&BRD=2553&PAG=461&dept_id=506035&rfi=6)
Seneca Ridge students overdose on cough medicine
By Jana Renn
Dextromethorphan, when used properly, acts as a cough suppressant. Taken in excessive amounts, it can have the effects of a psychoactive drug.
Most parents understand the dangers of alcohol, tobacco products and illegal drugs. They talk to their children early and often about the importance of staying away from these substances.
What they may not know is that abusing over-the-counter drugs can be just as dangerous, as evidenced by an incident that took place May 3 in a Loudoun County school.
Five teenagers were taken to area hospitals from Seneca Ridge Middle School in Sterling, exhibiting high blood-pressure levels from taking a nonprescription cold medication, according to Loudoun County Sheriff's spokesman Kraig Troxell.
Advertisement
The teens, ranging in age from 12 to 14, allegedly took Coricidin HBP Cough and Cold medication, Troxell said.
Wayde Byard, spokesman for Loudoun County Public Schools, said Seneca Ridge received an anonymous tip from the community about 11 a.m. on May 3 that a student had brought pills to school.
An assistant principal went to that student's classroom and informed the teacher, Byard said, and the student was then taken to the school's health clinic. A few minutes later, another student was brought to the clinic.
A Sheriff's school resource officer has determined that possibly seven students were involved. Four females and one male were transported to area hospitals, while two other students possibly involved had no symptoms, Troxell said.
The Sheriff's Office is still investigating the incident, but Troxell said most of the ramifications will come through the school system.
Byard credited Kathy Dunkin, the nurse at Seneca Ridge, with making the correct diagnosis and taking immediate action. She called 911 and had the paramedics there when the other students began arriving at the clinic.
All of the students were released from the hospital that day, and two returned to school to pick up their books.
Byard said the school is now in the disciplinary stage of the incident.
"Wednesday, our first priority was making sure the kids were safe and taken care of," Byard said. "Right now we want to act in a judicious manner, get back to the beginning and figure out exactly what happened."
Young people who take excessive amounts of cold and cough medicine consume high doses of dextromethorphan, one of the active ingredients in medications like Coricidin, Robitussin, Zicam and Delsym.
When taken in recommended doses, dextromethorphan acts as a cough suppressant. When abused, it can act as a dissociative psychedelic drug and cause hallucinations.
"That's in part why some people are looking to abuse it," said Dr. David Goodfriend, director of the Loudoun County Health Department.
Goodfriend added that many who want to abuse the drug look for dextromethorphan in pill form, such as Coricidin, because it is easier to ingest several pills than to drink two bottles of Robitussin.
He suspects that teens may abuse cold and cough medicine because they have easier access to it than to alcohol. The medicine is readily available at pharmacies, and students who are caught with it do not seem to raise suspicions, especially in winter when colds are rampant.
Goodfriend noted several things parents should look for if they suspect their children of abusing cold and cough medicine.
Dextromethorphan can cause users to appear intoxicated and to have trouble walking.
Other active ingredients can have different effects. The decongestants sometimes present can cause high blood pressure, chest pain and headaches. The antihistamines sometimes present can cause symptoms like dry mouth and fatigue.
High amounts of antihistamines can also decrease the ability to sweat, so in hot conditions the child may appear very red.
"In general, for most people, if they abuse cold and flu medications, these symptoms will come about," Goodfriend said.
He advises parents to always keep an eye on what their children are doing and to know how they normally act.
"The first indication in knowing if your child is using any type of intoxicant is in seeing how different they are acting."
http://www.timescommunity.com/site/tab1.cf...id=506035&rfi=6 (http://www.timescommunity.com/site/tab1.cfm?newsid=16612173&BRD=2553&PAG=461&dept_id=506035&rfi=6)