Green urine due to propofol

A previously healthy 72-year-old man was hospitalised for injuries sustained during a fall after taking sleep medication. His mental status deteriorated, and he demonstrated a Glasgow Coma Scale score of 8. He was tachypnoeic and hypoxic due to right-sided flail chest and multiple rib fractures. He was intubated and sedated with propofol at 160 mg/hour. His urine turned green within a few hours of initiating propofol (figures 1 and 2), and the discolouration resolved when the sedation was interrupted. Green urine is a rare side effect of propofol, with an incidence of less than 1% in patients receiving propofol.1 Excretion of water-soluble quinol derivatives, which are the metabolites of propofol, into urine can cause green discolouration.2 This phenomenon usually occurs after prolonged infusion of propofol but can occasionally occur with an induction dose of propofol.3 The differential diagnosis of green...
Source: Postgraduate Medical Journal - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Images Source Type: research