For an amphetamine overdose, what is the recommended treatment if the patient presents within one hour?

For an amphetamine overdose, what is the recommended treatment if the patient presents within one hour?

• A. Naloxone
• B. Activated charcoal
• C. Diazepam
• D. Physostigmine

Answer: (B)

Activated charcoal is the best choice here. When someone presents within about an hour after ingesting amphetamines, giving activated charcoal in the gut can bind the drug and reduce how much is absorbed into the bloodstream, limiting toxicity. The other options don’t address absorption in the gut: naloxone reverses opioids, not amphetamines; diazepam can help control agitation or seizures but isn’t the decontamination step; physostigmine is used for anticholinergic toxicity and is not appropriate for stimulant overdose. If agitation or seizures occur, benzodiazepines may be used as supportive therapy, but the immediate recommended treatment within one hour is activated charcoal, assuming the patient’s airway is protected.

Activated charcoal is the best choice here. When someone presents within about an hour after ingesting amphetamines, giving activated charcoal in the gut can bind the drug and reduce how much is absorbed into the bloodstream, limiting toxicity. The other options don’t address absorption in the gut: naloxone reverses opioids, not amphetamines; diazepam can help control agitation or seizures but isn’t the decontamination step; physostigmine is used for anticholinergic toxicity and is not appropriate for stimulant overdose. If agitation or seizures occur, benzodiazepines may be used as supportive therapy, but the immediate recommended treatment within one hour is activated charcoal, assuming the patient’s airway is protected.