Occupational inhalation poisoning with the veterinary antibiotic tiamulin

Abstract

Introduction: Tiamulin is a semisynthetic pleuromutilin diterpene veterinary antibiotic, widely used in farms. We present a case of prolonged QT-interval and ventricular tachyarrhythmia after tiamulin inhalation.

Case presentation: A 43-year-old veterinarian without previous medical history was dividing granulated powder of antibiotic gravimetrically without wearing personal protective equipment. Half an hour after exposure, nausea occurred; four hours later he started to vomit and soon after that he experienced syncope. He was unconscious three minutes; afterwards he became somnolent, dizzy and nauseated with sweating and salivation. On admission to hospital five hours after exposure, he was conscious and had heart rate 70 beats/min and blood pressure 140/80 mmHg. Initial laboratory results were normal. Electrocardiography showed a prolonged QTc-interval of 730 ms with numerous polymorphic ventricular extrasystoles and episodes of non-sustained polymorphic ventricular tachycardia that resolved after treatment with lidocaine and magnesium. Subsequent electrocardiography revealed gradual shortening of QTc-interval with QTc-interval normalization (430 ms) between 24 and 32 hours after tiamulin exposure. Laboratory tests, morphologic heart diagnostics and genetic testing excluded other potential causes of QTc-interval prolongation. Subsequent toxicology analysis by LC-MS/MS confirmed tiamulin in his serum samples on admittance (500 ng/mL).

Conclusion: Tiamulin inhalation can be associated with prolonged QT-interval and ventricular tachyarrhythmia. QT-interval prolongation could be expected in overdoses of emerging human pleuromutilins.

Keywords:

• Pleuromutilin
• tiamulin
• inhalation
• occupational poisoning
• prolonged QT-interval
• cardiac safety
• personal protective equipment

Acknowledgements

A sincere thank you to Michael Eddleston for his diligent proofreading this article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.