Cyclonite-Induced Seizures After Voluntary C-4 Ingestion
Fang, Ton ; Karandikar, Paramesh V ; Young, Taylor R ; Umeton, Raffaella P
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Abstract
Cyclonite (cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine, RDX, hexogen) is the active agent in the plastic explosive, composition 4 (C-4). It has been used globally since the Vietnam War for both military and civilian applications due to its metastable nature. Ingestion or inhalation of C-4 can cause euphoric effects such as those commonly seen with alcohol toxicity, in addition to seizures and rarely fulminant liver and kidney failure. We report the case of a patient who ingested 75 g of C-4 and presented with a generalized tonic-clonic seizure four hours after ingestion. Our patient made a full recovery after being stabilized with temporizing anticonvulsants in the intensive care unit.
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Fang T, Karandikar PV, Young TR, Umeton RP. Cyclonite-Induced Seizures After Voluntary C-4 Ingestion. Cureus. 2023 Oct 26;15(10):e47746. doi: 10.7759/cureus.47746. PMID: 38021663; PMCID: PMC10676266.