Serotonin Syndrome Case Study Essay

In the case study with the patient Mary lee, she began showing a few different symptoms such as restlessness, muscles twitching, little muscle control, agitated, and not aware/more confused about simple things. When Mrs. Lee went for a checkup for these symptoms it was noted that she had a rapid irregular heart rate also the patient's blood pressure was elevated since her last visit. Soon after the psychiatrist asked if Mrs. Lee was taking any other medications since he prescribed her Lexapro. Mrs. Lee was also taking Flexeril for her neck and muscle pain. After getting all this information the psychiatrist diagnosed Mrs. Lee with serotonin syndrome. He also switched her medications from Lexapro to Prestig.

Serotonin syndrome is chemical made by the body that allows brain cells and other nervous system cells to communicate/signals with one another. Serotonin syndrome can occurs when a person takes medications that cause high levels of the chemical serotonin to increase in the body. Also serotonin syndrome can occur when the person increase the dosage of such a drug or add a new drug to their regimen. When a person has Serotonin syndrome there are several types of symptoms a person can experience.

Some of the symptoms a person could get are confusion, agitation or restlessness, dilated pupils, headache, changes in blood pressure and/or temperature, nausea and/or vomiting, diarrhea, Rapid heart rate, tremor, Loss of muscle coordination or twitching muscles, shriving and goose bumps and Heavy sweating.

With Mrs. Lee experiencing some of these symptoms such as restlessness, muscles twitching, little muscle control, agitated, confusion, rapid irregular heart and change in blood pressure this allowed the psychiatrist to easily diagnosed Mrs. Lee. If Mrs. Lee didn’t go in for evaluation and that this problem wasn’t taken cared of early enough some of the problems that Mrs. Less would have faced are unconsciousness and

death.
Since Mrs. Lee was taking Lexapro and Flexeril this is what caused the problem. Lexapro is a drug that affects the chemicals in the brain that may become unbalanced and cause depression and/or anxiety. While Flexeril is a drug that relaxes the muscle, works by blocking nerve impulses or pain sensations that are sent to your brain. Mixing Lexapro oral and Flexeril oral both will increase affecting serotonin levels in the blood. Too much serotonin is a life-threatening situation. This is why the psychiatrist change her medication from Lexapro to Prestig