Acute carbamazepine poisoning treated with plasmapheresis. Description of a clinical case

: A case of severe Carbamazepine poisoning initially misdiagnosed is reported. Treatment consisted in plasmapheresis (3.5 liters exchanged) repeated for 3 consecutive days, in conjunction with activated charcoal and advanced life support. It was obtained a rapid decay in Carbamazepine plasmatic level (with rebound phenomenon only after first treatment day) and a contemporary improvement in clinical conditions. The patient was discharged without complications after 6 days stay in ICU. Taking pharmacokinetic characteristics into account, it is suggested that plasmapheresis may be useful in this kind of poisoning.