Question Of The Day

In kouda/kodo millet seed poisoning, what is the most concerning sign and its treatment? Bradycardia and atropine. Surendar R, Rangaswamy A, Ayyan M, Balamurugan N, Pillai V (2021) Sinus Bradyarrhythmia in Accidental Kodo Millet (Paspalum scrobiculatum) Poisoning – A Case Report. Asia Pacific Journal of…

Historical QOD 11/5/08: What metal is being increasingly substituted for depleted uranium in military munitions, and how might it be more toxic than depleted uranium? Tungsten, which may pose a carcinogenic risk to a greater extent than does uranium. Mil Med, 2007 Sep, 172(9):1002-5

The common houseplant Epipremnum aureus (i.e. pothos, Ceylon creeper, devil’s ivy) has been a subject of interest with regards to removal of volatile organic compounds. A recent study demonstrated that introduction of which transgene resulted in significantly reduced concentrations of the volatile organic compounds benzene…

In retrospective review of NPDS data, how did the epidemiology of fatal verapamil and amlodipine toxicity change from 2011 to 2020? In 2011, there were 32 fatal verapamil overdoses and 26 fatal amlodipine overdoses. In 2020, verapamil accounted for 25 fatalities while amlodipine accounted for…

Strychnos nux-vomica seeds are the source of styrchninie. Another Strychnos genus is the source of another toxin dating to antiquity. What Strychnos species is this and what is the toxin? The bark of S. toxifera is a source of curare. Guo CJ & Sutin KM….

Clonidine overdose can present in the same way as an overdose of what other class of medications? Clonidine overdoses mimic that of opioid overdoses with signs of central nervous system depression, bradycardia, hypotension, and respiratory depression. Treatment options are also similar to that of opioid…

Historical QOD 11/4/08: What is the predominant histopathological finding in the livers of patients who have died from poisonings from phosphide-containing pesticides? Fine cytoplasmic vacuolization (seen in almost 95% of fatalities). This vacuolization was distributed uniformly in all hepatic zones in 75% of cases. Forensic…

What pathway leads to insulin resistance in calcium channel blocker overdose? Calcium channel blockers cause dysregulation of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase pathway for glucose entry by inhibiting protein kinase B, resulting in insulin resistance and need for high doses of insulin (1-10 units/kg/hr) to treat myocardial…

Common symptoms of acute carbon monoxide poisoning include headache, dizziness, vomiting, and chest pain. What are long term complications of CO poisoning? Delayed neurologic sequelae (DNS) which includes symptoms of dementia, amnestic syndromes, psychosis, Parkinsonism, and peripheral neuropathy. DNS is most likely to occur in…

Yew plants (from which paclitaxel was derived) contain Taxine A and B which at toxic levels can cause bradycardia, dysrhythmias, hypotension, seizures, and cardiac arrest. By what mechanism does this occur? An increase in cytoplasmic calcium via a dose-dependent inhibition of both calcium channel and…