A patient with chronic alcoholism who wishes to avoid "binge drinking" has obtained a prescrip-tion for disulfiram (Antabuse). Review the following reactions, and choose the one that will oc-cur if alcohol is ingested while taking this drug
a. Facial flushing, headache, and nausea and vomiting
b. Dizziness, diarrhea, and abdominal pain
c. Fever, joint aches, and sensation of being chilled
d. Drowsiness, sedation, and impaired night vision
ANS: A
Long-term drug therapy for chronic alcoholism involves disulfiram (Antabuse). Disulfiram blocks the action of aldehyde dehydrogenase, allowing acetaldehyde to accumulate. Accumulation of acetaldehyde in the blood produces a complex of highly unpleasant symptoms referred to here-inafter as the disulfiram-alcohol reaction: flushing, throbbing in the head and neck, respiratory difficulty, nausea, copious vomiting, sweating, thirst, chest pain, palpitation, dyspnea, hyperven-tilation, tachycardia, hypotension, syncope, marked uneasiness, weakness, vertigo, blurred vision, and confusion. In severe reactions, there may be respiratory depression, cardiovascular collapse, arrhythmias, myocardial infarction, acute heart failure, unconsciousness, convulsions, and death.
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