Open Access“Ping-pong gaze” secondary to monoamine oxidase inhibitor overdose
Author(s) -
Amy Attaway,
Laila Sroujieh,
Tracey L. Mersfelder,
Christopher R. Butler,
Daniel R. Ouellette
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of pharmacology and pharmacotherapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.301
H-Index - 34
eISSN - 0976-5018
pISSN - 0976-500X
DOI - 10.4103/0976-500x.179360
Subject(s) - ping pong , monoamine oxidase inhibitor , phenelzine , toxicity , gaze , monoamine oxidase , medicine , etiology , anesthesia , psychology , chemistry , computer science , psychoanalysis , simulation , biochemistry , enzyme , human arm
An infrequent manifestation of monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI) toxicity is "ping-pong gaze" (PPG). We describe the case of a 26-year-old female who was found unresponsive after taking 40 tablets of phenelzine. On presentation to the hospital, her eyes were moving in characteristic "ping pong" fashion. After 6 hours her gaze terminated. The following day her neurologic exam was benign and she had no long-term sequelae. While the etiology of PPG is unknown, it is most often seen with irreversible structural brain damage. However, a detailed literature review revealed that previous cases of MAOI toxicity where the patient survived have all had complete neurologic recovery.