Delirium Tremens

Symptoms & Signs

• Symptoms of alcohol withdrawal
  • Feeling jumpy or nervous
  • Feeling shaky
  • Anxiety
  • Irritability or easily excited
  • Emotional volatility, rapid emotional changes
  • Depression
  • Fatigue
  • Difficulty thinking clearly
  • Palpitations (sensation of feeling the heart beat)
  • Headache, general, pulsating
  • Sweating, especially the palms of the hands or the face
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Loss of appetite
  • Insomnia, difficulty falling asleep
  • Pale skin
• Mental status changes
  • Mood changes rapidly
  • Restlessness
  • Increased activity
  • Decreased attention span
  • Excitement
  • Fear
  • Confusion, disorientation
  • Agitation, irritability
  • Hallucinations, visual hallucinations (snakes, bugs, etc.) are most common
  • Sensory hyperacuity (highly sensitive to light, sound, touch, etc.)
  • Delirium (severe, acute loss of mental functions)
  • Decreased mental status
    • Stuporous, somnolent, lethargic
    • Deep sleep that persists for a day or longer
    • Usually occurs after acute symptoms
• Seizures
  • Usually generalized tonic-clonic seizures
  • Most common in first 24 - 48 hours
  • Most common in people with previous alcohol withdrawal complications
• Body tremors

• Fever
• Stomach pain
• Chest pain