Atom’s Blog

Twice as many people are dying of liver disease in 2014 than were in 1991.

Are 21st Century people taking that much more acetaminophen?

A woman went to the emergency room of a hospital with severe flu symptoms.

She started having seizures while still in the emergency room, so she was hospitalized.

Test after test couldn’t find the cause, so she was released from the hospital still having seizures.

I was brought to see her, and I asked, “Can you stick out your tongue?”

“No.”

“Could you stick out your tongue before you went to the hospital?”

“Yes.”

“And the neurologist never asked you to stick out your tongue?”

“No, he didn’t.”

“Did they give you any drugs in the hospital?”

“No.”

“Are you sure they didn’t give you any drugs at all?”

“No, none at all.”

“Are you absolutely sure of that? Did they give you anything at all?”

“Well, they did give me three 350-milligram tablets of Tylenol.”

“Aha! You have Tylenol poisoning!”

She continued having seizures, and returned to the hospital.

They tested her north, south, east, and west.

She was examined by a neurologist, cardiologist, psychiatrist, etc.

After another week in the hospital, the final diagnosis was …

Reye’s syndrome, caused by Tylenol.
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