Chong C S Y
Department of Psychiatry, Kwai Chung Hospital, Hong Kong SAR, China.
East Asian Arch Psychiatry. 2010 Dec;20(4):186-9.
Two women presented independently with a clinical picture of mania-like psychosis after taking over-the-counter herbal slimming pills. Subsequent toxicology investigation found sibutramine in the samples of both patients. Sibutramine is an effective pharmacological treatment for obesity with a relatively favourable side-effect profile. However, neuropsychiatric side-effects of sibutramine have emerged with increasing use of the medication. Sibutramine may be associated with the development of psychotic symptoms in susceptible individuals. Further studies should aim at establishing any causal relationship between sibutramine and psychosis. There also seems to be an emerging trend of adulteration of over-the-counter slimming products with pharmaceutical analogues in Hong Kong. Physicians should be vigilant to the possibility of non-prescribed drug use when patients present with suspicious symptoms while using herbal remedies.
两名女性在服用非处方草本减肥药丸后，各自出现了类似躁狂的精神病临床症状。随后的毒理学调查在两名患者的样本中均发现了西布曲明。西布曲明是一种治疗肥胖症的有效药物，副作用相对较小。然而，随着该药物使用的增加，西布曲明的神经精神副作用也逐渐显现。西布曲明可能会使易感个体出现精神症状。进一步的研究应致力于确定西布曲明与精神病之间是否存在因果关系。在香港，非处方减肥产品掺假添加药物类似物的趋势似乎也在显现。当患者在使用草药疗法时出现可疑症状时，医生应警惕非处方药物使用的可能性。
