Citation

Milne ST, Meek PD. Am. J. Emerg. Med. 1998; 16(6): 603-608.

Affiliation

Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Cincinnati, OH 45267-0769, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1998, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

9786547

Abstract

Colchicine poisoning is an uncommon, but potentially life-threatening, toxicologic emergency. A case is reported of a 21-year-old woman who presented to the emergency department approximately 1 hour after ingesting 30 mg of colchicine in a suicide attempt. Her clinical course included gastrointestinal distress, metabolic acidosis, pancytopenia, hypotension, adult respiratory distress syndrome, rhabdomyolysis, and hypocalcemia. Despite aggressive medical management, the patient suffered a cardiac arrest and died 8 days after the ingestion. The clinical features of colchicine poisoning are highlighted and current therapeutic options are discussed.

Language: en