In this interrupted case study, a middle-aged man is having his wisdom teeth surgically removed. He decides to have a general anesthetic, but is unaware of the reaction he will have to halothane. His skeletal muscles go rigid and his body temperature rapidly increases. Students use their knowledge of nerve, synaptic, and muscle function to complete flow diagrams, and consider how each step in the flow diagram could produce maintained muscle contraction. The case is used in a one-semester animal physiology course taken by sophomore and junior science majors. It could also be used in a freshman general biology course or in an anatomy and physiology course.