We report a fatal case of suicide presenting with convulsions and subsequently multi-organ failure. Rodenticide poisoning was not suspected until the next day when tetramine was detected in the patient's blood, urine, and food residues. Tetramine is a potent rodenticide with a rapid action and high mortality. The poison has been banned worldwide but is still readily available in Mainland China....

Fatal hydrogen sulphide poisoning usually occurs in confined spaces. We report two fatal accidents in unconfined spaces. The first accident caused the death of three workers who entered an unconfined room in a silo of sludge at the same time that a truck dumped several tons of sludge from water purification stations. The hydrogen sulphide that had accumulated inside the silo spilled out into th...

C. McI., a man aged 26 years, a joiner, on August 12. 1953. during the course of a bout of alcoholism. consumed a quantity of carbon tetrachloride in the form of " thawpit." Shortly afterwards he became intensely nauseated, but was unable to vomit for several hours. Thereafter, however, and for the following 48 hours vomiting was intractable. During this time he complained of pain in the chest,...

Marked peaking of the T waves later recognized as being due to hyperkalemia was noted in a patient with acute fluoride intoxication before developing refractory ventricular fibrillation. Such T wave changes have not been previously described in fluoride intoxication and should alert one to the presence of hyperkalemia complicating this condition, the presence of which may herald the onset of le...

Of the nineteen cases of Gramoxone poisoning treated at the Medical Unit, Toa Payoh Hospital, three survived. The clinical data of these survivors is presented. The maximal ingested dose compatible with life in the present series is twenty millilitresof Grammoxonewhile the excretion rate of paraquat in urine in a non -fatal case is 0.92 mg/hr in the first 24 hours. In the follow-up of these sur...

References HAMPTON, J.R. & MITCHELL, M.R.A. (1966) Abnormalities of platelet behaviour in acute illness. British Medical Journal, 51, 1079 JAN, KUNG-MING, CHIEN, SHU & BIGGER, J.T., JR (1975) Observations on blood viscosity changes after myocardial infarction. Circulation, 51, 1079. KASABACH, H.H. & MERRITT, K.K. (1940) Capillary hemangioma with extensive purpura. American Journal of Diseases o...

Triazolam, which is widely prescribed as a hypnotic, is considered to be safe even in overdose. In elderly patients, however, overdose may be fatal, particularly in patients taking concomitant drug treatment or with serious disease. Case reports Case I-A 76 year old woman with bone pain from osteomalacia due to renal tubular acidosis had been treated with alfacalcidol, calcium supplements, sodi...

CONTEXT Taxine-derived alkaloids, taxane-derived substances, and glycosides seem to be responsible for the toxicity of Taxus spp. by blocking microtubule, sodium and calcium channels causing conduction abnormalities. Cases with Taxus baccata acute intoxication have rarely been reported. CASE DETAILS We report the case of a 43-year-old man who ingested, for suicidal purposes, common (or Europe...

Metabolic and toxicological data were obtained during the first 24 hours following severe and eventually fatal cyanide poisoning. Initial blood cyanide concentrations were 804 mumol/l but fell rapidly over 24 hours following cobalt edetate therapy to 15 mumol/l. However, plasma thiocyanate concentrations rose over 24 hours (147-267 mumol/l) suggesting continued tissue detoxification. The major ...