The Poison Control Center (Bach Mai Hospital) received patient TTT (46 years old, Ha Tinh) transferred from Ha Tinh Provincial General Hospital in a state of deep coma and circulatory arrest. Doctors at the Poison Control Center (Bach Mai Hospital) conducted aggressive treatment regimens, but the patient did not survive.
According to medical history, at 6:30 a.m. on July 4, the patient drank about 500 - 600ml of decoction from dried roots. The root used is said to be the toadstool root with the effect of treating oil pain and perennial insomnia. It is dug in the forest and is often used by people as a decoction.
After 10 minutes of drinking, the patient's mouth appeared distorted, he was exhausted, and still responded to calls. The patient goes to the commune clinic, then is transferred to the district hospital. On the journey, which lasted about 15 minutes, the patient's consciousness gradually decreased and he did not respond to calls.
At the district hospital, the patient was treated with endotracheal tube placement, intravenous fluids and transferred to Ha Tinh Provincial General Hospital. On the journey lasting more than 1 hour, the patient appeared pale. Entering Ha Tinh Provincial General Hospital, the patient was in a state of circulatory arrest and had to receive emergency treatment after 15 minutes of having a pulse again. However, circulatory arrest continued to occur afterward. On the same day, the patient was transferred to the Poison Control Center (Bach Mai Hospital) in a state of deep coma, respiratory failure, and cardiovascular collapse.
With the symptoms of the case, doctors at the Poison Control Center suspected that the patient was poisoned by the palm leaf tree. Doctors collected a sample of the patient's root decoction for testing at the hospital, and sent the sample to the National Institute for Food Safety and Hygiene Testing.
Test results from the National Institute for Food Safety and Hygiene Testing showed that decoction samples and sliced dried root branches provided by the patient's family all found koumine and gelsemine group toxins, these are both toxins. in the finger tree.
The patient's family members added that there were 3 other people drinking medicinal water from the roots of the tree with the patient. These 3 people drank the night before, then showed signs of dizziness and fatigue.
"Three people drank it the night before. Their symptoms were mild, possibly because the medicinal liquid had just been decocted. Not much of the toxin had seeped out and the amount they drank was small. Leave it overnight, the poison diffuses and seeps into the water, patient T drinks 500 - 600ml more. With finger leaves, only a very small amount is needed, 2-3 leaves when eaten can quickly cause death" - Dr. Nguyen Trung Nguyen, Director of the Poison Control Center (Bach Mai Hospital) said.
Dr. Nguyen Trung Nguyen added: The finger leaf tree and the toad root tree have the same shape, so it is easy to confuse them. Digging a tree root from the soil in a forest where there are already many trees growing together can completely result in accidentally picking up the root of another tree. The poison control center has also encountered similar cases in the past where people mistakenly drank the roots of the finger plant, or committed suicide by eating the leaves.
The finger leaf plant (yellow finger, intestinal medicine), scientific name: Gelsemium elegans, belongs to the coriander family, has a climbing stem, is a poisonous plant that often grows naturally in mountainous provinces, especially in the North of our country. Toxic ingredients in the plant include indole alkaloids: koumine, gelsemine, gelsemicine, sempervirine and other substances, found in the entire plant but mostly in the roots and even nectar. Bees that eat the honey can also be infected. poisoned.
The main toxins of the leaves are neurotoxins (causing muscle paralysis, convulsions-like myoclonus), and cardiotoxic (causing arrhythmia). After eating the plant, the toxins are quickly absorbed, poisoning appears quickly, only about 5 - 10 minutes. Toxins entering the body cause paralysis of all muscles, double vision (seeing one object in two, due to paralysis of the eye muscles), blurred vision, tilted head and neck, distorted mouth, difficulty speaking, paralysis of respiratory muscles showing difficulty breathing. , weak breathing, respiratory failure, paralysis of legs and arms, arrhythmia and rapid cardiac arrest, death if not promptly treated.
The cause of death is paralysis of the respiratory muscles (diaphragm, intercostal muscles, oropharyngeal muscles), muscle spasms, convulsive myoclonus or cardiac arrhythmia, or a combination of these causes.
