Investigation of a foodborne poisoning incident caused by accidental consumption of medicinal liquor containing aconite alkaloids
10.19428/j.cnki.sjpm.2024.23773
- VernacularTitle:一起误服含有乌头类生物碱药酒引起食源性中毒事件的调查
- Author:
Xiaoyi ZHANG
1
;
Sanyan ZHENG
1
;
Xiuyao ZHANG
1
Author Information
1. Wenzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention， Wenzhou， Zhejiang 325000， China
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
aconite;
aconitum alkaloid;
food poisoning;
investigation
- From:
Shanghai Journal of Preventive Medicine
2024;36(7):650-652
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
A foodborne poisoning incident occurred in a street， Ouhai District， Wenzhou City， Zhejiang Province on May 9， 2023， which was caused by the accidental consumption of medicinal liquor containing aconitum alkaloids. Three individuals drank homemade aconite-containing medicinal liquor and were subsequently poisoned， of which two cases were severe， and one case was mild. All three patients exhibited symptoms such as numbness in the mouth， tongue and limbs， dizziness， fatigue， nausea， vomiting， and blurred vision. Two of them successively entered a state of shock and coma， with an incubation period of approximately 30 minutes. Among seven samples of suspected homemade medicinal liquor， one sample tested positive simultaneously for aconitine， neaconitine， hypaconitine， and benzoylaconitine， with concentrations of 62.3 mg·L-1， 2.6 mg·L-1， 17.7 mg·L-1， and 31.6 mg·L-1， respectively. Four kinds of aconite alkaloids were detected in all the urine， blood， and vomit samples from the patients， and the most toxic aconitine was detected at levels of 1.5 μg·L-1， 5.9 μg·L-1， and 26.2 μg·L-1， respectively. Based on the field epidemiological investigation， combined with clinical manifestations and laboratory test results， it was determined that this incident was a case of food poisoning caused by the accidental consumption of medicinal liquor containing aconite. Due to timely rescue and proper treatment measures， all poisoned patients have recovered， with no fatalities. It is suggested that relevant authorities should strengthen the regulation of the processing and sale of aconite herbs and promote the awareness of food safety.
