Abstract
Serotonin syndrome is an increasingly common not idiosyncratic adverse drug reaction, which can be life-threatening. Serotonin syndrome is considered a clinical triad of autonomic symtoms, mental status changes and neuromuscular abnormalities. Physicians are encouraged to consider the possibility of serotonin syndrome in patients with this triad of symtoms, because patients and physicians are often unaware of the additive serotoninergic effects of various medications and the resulting increased risk for developing serotonin syndrome.
The risk of developing serotonin syndrome is greater when medicines are given in combination. Antidepressants, particularly selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, are among the most commonly implicated drugs.