TY - JOUR AU - Werneke, Ursula AU - Jamshidi, Fariba AU - Taylor, David M. AU - Ott, Michael PY - 2016 DA - 2016/07/12 TI - Conundrums in neurology: diagnosing serotonin syndrome – a meta-analysis of cases JO - BMC Neurology SP - 97 VL - 16 IS - 1 AB - Serotonin syndrome is a toxic state, caused by serotonin (5HT) excess in the central nervous system. Serotonin syndrome’s main feature is neuro-muscular hyperexcitability, which in many cases is mild but in some cases can become life-threatening. The diagnosis of serotonin syndrome remains challenging since it can only be made on clinical grounds. Three diagnostic criteria systems, Sternbach, Radomski and Hunter classifications, are available. Here we test the validity of four assumptions that have become widely accepted: (1) The Hunter classification performs clinically better than the Sternbach and Radomski criteria; (2) in contrast to neuroleptic malignant syndrome, the onset of serotonin syndrome is usually rapid; (3) hyperthermia is a hallmark of severe serotonin syndrome; and (4) serotonin syndrome can readily be distinguished from neuroleptic malignant syndrome on clinical grounds and on the basis of medication history. SN - 1471-2377 UR - https://doi.org/10.1186/s12883-016-0616-1 DO - 10.1186/s12883-016-0616-1 ID - Werneke2016 ER -