[Retrospective study of two cases of acute datura poisoning].

ABSTRACT

We saw 2 cases of datura poisoning, with the main complaint of impaired consciousness, which were brought to the emergency department of this hospital. The poisonous constituent of the datura is tropane alkaloid, which is said to have a short half-life period that makes it difficult to determine its quantity in the blood or urine. We stored the urine and blood specimens taken when the patients were brought in and sent them for analysis at a public health center a few days later. The determined amounts for both patients are as follows. Case 1 serum atropine, 70 ng/mL; scopolamine, 210 ng/mL; urine atropine, 0.34 mg/L; scopolamine, 0.11 mg/L. Case 2 serum atropine, 60 ng/ mL ; scopolamine, 380 ng/mL ; urine atropine, 0.22 mg/L ; scopolamine, 0.14 mg/L. We attempted to compare these results with literature on the possible measurement of a determined amount in light of comparative considerations of the correlation between blood concentration and clinical conditions, but encountered some difficulties due to the lack of available reports. However, as our own experiment cases are retrospective we report them as valuable cases in which it is possible to obtain a determined amount of tropane alkaloid.