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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Could Slurred Speech Be Side Effect Of Certain Medicines?

Are there medications whose side effects result in a person having symptoms of drinking alcohol? For example: slurred speech or difficulty putting words together accompanied by breath smelling sweet or metallic, not necessarily like alcohol but perhaps somewhat. I know what a person smells like when drinking and I wouldn t necessarily say this is the case.
posted on Fri, 12 Dec 2014
Twitter Tue, 30 Dec 2014 Answered on
Twitter Tue, 30 Dec 2014 Last reviewed on
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
Hello
As you mentioned that "are there medications whose side effects shows that symptoms simulates alcohol"
So read this Slurred speech or incoherent speech occurs due by enhancing the INHIBITORY GABA a receptor activity and inhibiting the excitatory NMDA receptors .
So all the drugs which acts like alcohol are so many and beyond the answer at this level .
Benzodiazepines inhibits GABA a if taken in large quantity .
So many other drugs like barbiturates, non-barbiturates , diphehydramine , promethazine also shows such type of activity.
Hope this will be useful for you.
However, as I mentioned even mild to moderate opium , cannabis also produces such effects.
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Could Slurred Speech Be Side Effect Of Certain Medicines?

Hello As you mentioned that are there medications whose side effects shows that symptoms simulates alcohol So read this Slurred speech or incoherent speech occurs due by enhancing the INHIBITORY GABA a receptor activity and inhibiting the excitatory NMDA receptors . So all the drugs which acts like alcohol are so many and beyond the answer at this level . Benzodiazepines inhibits GABA a if taken in large quantity . So many other drugs like barbiturates, non-barbiturates , diphehydramine , promethazine also shows such type of activity. Hope this will be useful for you. However, as I mentioned even mild to moderate opium , cannabis also produces such effects.