1. Acute selenium poisoning by paradise nuts (Lecythis ollaria)
- Author
-
Herbert Desel and D Müller
- Subjects
Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis ,hair loss ,Physiology ,010501 environmental sciences ,Toxicology ,01 natural sciences ,Trees ,0302 clinical medicine ,Lecythidaceae ,Ingestion ,Nuts ,Lecythis ollaria ,030212 general & internal medicine ,selenium ,Plant Poisoning ,Food poisoning ,biology ,Headache ,Nausea ,General Medicine ,Middle Aged ,3. Good health ,Acute Disease ,Vomiting ,Thallium ,Female ,medicine.symptom ,Adult ,medicine.medical_specialty ,paradise nuts ,chemistry.chemical_element ,Dizziness ,03 medical and health sciences ,Selenium ,medicine ,Humans ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,business.industry ,Alopecia ,medicine.disease ,biology.organism_classification ,Surgery ,poisoning ,Hair loss ,chemistry ,Nails ,plasma and urine ,business - Abstract
Two previously healthy women developed nausea, vomiting, headache and dizziness for several days, a massive hair loss about 2 weeks later and a discoloration of the fingernails. Detailed diagnostic procedures did not reveal any pathological results. Therapeutic measures did not show any effect. Thallium and arsenic were within normal range in plasma. Delayed quantitative determination of selenium in blood, however revealed toxic values (in case I: 479 microg/L of serum, 8 weeks after ingestion, and in case II 300 microg/L of serum, 9 weeks after ingestion). In retrospect, a relation to the ingestion of paradise nuts could be established. peerReviewed
- Published
- 2010