- 1General Hospital Chilaw, Putlam Road, Chilaw, Sri Lanka. kvcjanaka@yahoo.com.
- 2, 259/2d Kahanthota, Malabe, Colombo, Sri Lanka. kvcjanaka@yahoo.com.
- 3General Hospital Chilaw, Putlam Road, Chilaw, Sri Lanka.
Abstract
BACKGROUND:
Gloriosa
superba, well known as the glory lily or superb lily, is a tropical
climbing plant that features an exotic red flower. The plant is
poisonous because of high concentrations of colchicine in all parts of
the plant. It is commercially grown for use in Ayurveda medicine
and as a cash crop for extracting colchicine in India and Africa. It is
a wild plant in Sri Lanka and commercial cultivation is rare.
Accidental and suicidal poisonings with Gloriosa tubers are well known
and reported. There are no case reports of poisoning by Gloriosa seeds
in Sri Lanka. Google and PubMed searches showed no reported cases of
poisoning with seeds or their use with homicidal intent in other parts
of the world.
CASE PRESENTATION:
A 27-year-old man was brought to hospital with profuse vomiting and diarrhea after drinking coriander tea, which is a common traditional treatment for common cold.
The family members suspected poisoning by Gloriosa because they had
seeds at home and the victim's sister-in-law who had made the herbal
tea went missing from home. They were able to identify Gloriosa seeds,
which looked similar to coriander, in the pot. The patient developed
shock and respiratory distress and needed ventilation and intensive
care. He also developed mild renal impairment, and thrombocytopenia. He
developed massive generalized alopecia while recovering from acute
illness. Full recovery was achieved after 15 days of hospital care.
CONCLUSIONS:
There
are many poisonous plants in Asian countries. This case highlights the
possibility of accidental or intentional use of Gloriosa seeds or its
extracts to cause potentially fatal poisoning. It would be difficult to
identify Gloriosa as the cause of poisoning without any background
information because of multiple complications that can mimic a systemic
infection. This case is a good example of the use of plants as
biological weapons.
KEYWORDS:
Colchicine; Gloriosa superba seeds; Poisoning; Sri Lanka
