Chloral hydrate: unusually high concentrations in a fatal overdose.

A case in which chloral hydrate as a pure chemical rather than the prescribed drug caused the death of a 27-year-old white male is presented. Trichloroethanol was quantified in blood and tissues by electron capture gas chromatography. The blood trichloroethanol concentration found in this case (1700 mg/L) was higher than had been previously reported in the literature.