Comment: Rhabdomyolysis and acute renal failure following an ethanol and diphenhydramine overdose.
Case ReportsCommentLetterHuman subjects
Names both Alcohol and Diphenhydramine in its title.
Supplement × Prescription·Evidence index
PubMed indexes 8 records that name Alcohol and Diphenhydramine together, either in the title or in an interaction, co-administration, or pharmacokinetic context. Each one is listed below with its study design and, where the abstract states one, the authors’ own conclusion, quoted and linked. This page reports that literature. It does not tell you whether to combine them.
Every statement below is attributed to a named, dated, linked source.
This page lists published research relevant to Alcohol and Diphenhydramine. It deliberately does not state whether the combination is safe, whether it interacts, in which direction, at what dose, or how far apart to take them.
Strongest relevance first: papers naming both substances in the title, then human trials and systematic reviews.
Names both Alcohol and Diphenhydramine in its title.
“Nontraumatic rhabdomyolysis is an uncommon adverse outcome of drug and toxin ingestion. Due to the potential severity of the complications of this syndrome and the importance of early recognition and treatment to prevent renal failure, clinicians should have a high index of suspicion for rhabdomyolysis following overdoses that involve alcohol or antihistamines.”
Names both Alcohol and Diphenhydramine in its title.
“Participants had similar performance when treated with fexofenadine or placebo. After alcohol use, participants performed the primary task well but not the secondary tasks; as a result, overall driving performance was poorer. After participants took diphenhydramine, driving performance was poorest, indicating that diphenhydramine had a greater impact on driving than alcohol did.”
Names both Alcohol and Diphenhydramine in its title.
“Ethanol reached zero, but triazolam and diphenhydramine did not. Continued sedation (sedative effects after plasma concentration reached zero) was observed with ethanol.”
Names both Alcohol and Diphenhydramine in its title.
“In combination with alcohol significant impairment was seen, but this was less pronounced than after diphenhydramine/alcohol. The second study failed to demonstrate differences between drug/alcohol combinations and alcohol alone confirming that the effect of acrivastine in combination with alcohol is small.”
Names both Alcohol and Diphenhydramine in its title.
“Antihistamine reduced the flushing response by 40% and decreased the pulse rate from 40 minutes onward after ethanol infusion subsequent to calcium carbamide dosing. Blood pressure was not significantly influenced by ethanol at the calcium carbimide dose we used.”
Names both Alcohol and Diphenhydramine in its title.
“Behavioral measures included compensatory tracking, a divided attention task, information processing rate, and critical tracking. Performance impairment occurred under all treatments with an additive effect under the combined drug-alcohol treatment.”
Names both Alcohol and Diphenhydramine in its title.
Names both Alcohol and Diphenhydramine in its title.
Search-based evidence indexes have real limits, and it is worth being explicit about them:
NutriStack is a free iPhone app for organising a supplement routine: what you take, when, and what the published record says about it. Its exploratory interaction checker covers Alcohol, Diphenhydramine, and several hundred other substances.
The checker is a research and organisation tool, not a clinical decision aid, and its per-pair assessments are excluded from search until they pass claim-level review.
NutriStack is an informational and organizational tool, not a medical service, and not a substitute for professional advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before starting, stopping, or changing any supplement or medication.