How to Treat Tylenol Overdoses

Although Tylenol is proven to be a safe and effective drug for pain relief, it can be lethal in large doses. Acetaminophen is the active ingredient in Tylenol and can also be found in many other pain relievers. An untreated overdose of acetaminophen can lead to liver failure and death. The National Institutes of Health recommends taking no more than 4,000 mg of acetaminophen a day. The symptoms of an overdose may not occur until 12 or more hours after the drugs were taken, and they are not limited to nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, appetite loss and sweating. If an overdose is suspected, take immediate action to get treated.

Things You'll Need

• Telephone
• Information about patient and overdose

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Instructions

• 1

  Call 9-1-1 immediately if the person is unconscious or not breathing. If the person has no symptoms, call the National Poison Center (1-800-222-1222) and they will instruct you what to do. NIH recommends determining the age, weight and physical condition of the patient; the product that was swallowed; when it was swallowed; and how much.

• 2

  Go to the emergency room as early as possible, within the eight hours after overdose. If it appears the person does not have symptoms yet, drive the person to the hospital. Otherwise, have an ambulance come to where you are. There is no home treatment, so you must seek medical attention immediately, according to the National Institutes of Health. Treatment will depend on the condition of the patient.

• 3

  Have a doctor empty the stomach if the patient reaches the hospital within minutes of taking the overdose. Although it's rare the patient would get there so soon, the doctor would attempt to induce vomiting or put a tube down their throat to remove any pill fragments. (ref. 3)

• 4

  Have an antidote administered at the hospital. N-acetylcysteine is the antidote for an acetaminophen overdose. It is given my mouth. If the person cannot take it by mouth, it may be given through a tube.

• 5

  Take activated charcoal, another treatment the doctor may give the patient. Activated charcoal is administered after the stomach is pumped to absorb the toxic chemicals inside the gastrointestinal tract. It can also be taken by mouth or tube. (ref. 3)