A case report of sleep terrors exacerbated by cetirizine

Sleep terrors are a type of sleep disorder that is classified as parasomnias and is more common in children than in adults. Cetirizine is a histamine H1 antagonist that is FDA approved for the treatment of allergic rhinitis and urticaria and has the common adverse effects of drowsiness and headaches. We present a case of an adult male with a history of chronic sleep terror disorder and allergic rhinitis who developed worsening of his sleep terrors after initiation of cetirizine and subsequently resolved after discontinuing cetirizine and starting paroxetine.

Keywords: allergic rhinitis; cetirizine; sleep terrors.