A patient on quinidine for atrial fibrillation develops tinnitus, vertigo, nausea, and headache at therapeutic plasma levels. This constellation is known as cinchonism. Which other drug class produces an identical clinical picture?
- A Salicylates ✓
- B Aminoglycoside antibiotics
- C Calcium channel blockers
- D ACE inhibitors
Correct answer: A. Salicylates
Explanation
Cinchonism (quinidine toxicity) and salicylism (aspirin overdose) both present with tinnitus, vertigo, nausea, headache, and hearing loss due to similar effects on cochlear and vestibular function. Aminoglycosides cause ototoxicity but via hair cell destruction with a different presentation. Calcium channel blockers and ACE inhibitors do not cause tinnitus or vertigo as characteristic toxicities.
Reference: Goodman and Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, 14th ed.
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