Altered Pharmacokinetics of Tricyclic Antidepressants in Burns

A case of self-inflicted burns that occurred in a 36-year-old female with suicidal ideation & delusions of guilt & nihilism is described. A course of electroconvulsive shock therapy had resolved the subject’s symptoms 8 months earlier, & she was on maintenance therapy. The case emphasizes the difficulties in utilizing plasma tricyclic antidepressant levels to determine adequacy of treatment because altered pharmacokinetics of tricyclic antidepressants can occur during disorders such as burns.