Decontamination

Offer gastrointestinal decontamination with activated charcoal to alert and cooperative patients who are able to protect their airway and present within:

• 2 hours after the estimated ingestion time for clonidine poisoning
• 4 hours after the estimated ingestion time for guanfacine poisoning.

If the patient is intubated, activated charcoal can be given any time after ingestion of clonidine or guanfacine via a nasogastric or orogastric tube—confirm correct placement of the nasogastric or orogastric tube beforehand.