A fatal case of hyperthermia due to tricyclic antidepressant intoxication.

We report here an autopsy case of a 49-year-old woman with depression who died of hyperthermia, probably due to amitriptyline intoxication. She was found dead in bed with several empty amitriptyline pill containers. Her rectal temperature was 41.5 degrees C approximately 3 hours after death. Plasma levels of amitriptyline and nortriptyline were 0.51 and 0.74 mg/l, respectively. Possible mechanisms of fatal hyperthermia are discussed.