Catatonia in a teenager after use of mephedrone as a recreational drug

Abstract

AIMS: The authors report a case of catatonia secondary to exposure to mephedrone, a semisynthetic derivative of the alkaloid cathinone, and review the literature on this substance that has been increasingly used as a recreational drug. CASE DESCRIPTION: A 14 year old boy was taken to the emergency room presenting severe psychomotor agitation with self and heteroaggressiveness followed by stupor, mutism and akinesia. On the admission examination the patient was unresponsive to stimuli. Complementary examination showed no significant changes. During hospitalization he had two episodes of severe psychomotor agitation and in the rest of the time he kept a pseudo-comatose state. After knowledge on the consumption of mephedrone prior to the onset of symptoms and facing the diagnostic hypothesis of catatonia, lorazepam was started, after which the patient showed rapid and complete recovery. CONCLUSIONS: According to the reviewed literature, this is the first published report of catatonia associated with consumption of mephedrone. The case illustrates a severe psychiatric manifestation secondary to exposure to this recreational drug, easily acquired by adolescents despite fatalities associated with its consumption have already been described.