Journal of The Korean Society of Clinical Toxicology (대한임상독성학회지)

Korean society of Clincal Toxicology (대한임상독성학회)
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Grayanotoxin Poisoning from Honey - A Case Report

히말라야 석청으로 인한 중독 1예

  • Choi, Gi-Hun (Department of Emergency Medicine, Hallym University Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital) ;
  • You, Ki-Cheol (Department of Emergency Medicine, Hallym University Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital) ;
  • Wang, Soon-Joo (Department of Emergency Medicine, Hallym University Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital) ;
  • Park, Tae-Jin (Department of Internal Medicine, Hallym University Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital)
  • 최기훈 (한림대학교 한강성심병원 응급의학과) ;
  • 유기철 (한림대학교 한강성심병원 응급의학과) ;
  • 왕순주 (한림대학교 한강성심병원 응급의학과) ;
  • 박태진 (한림대학교 한강성심병원 내과)
  • Received : 2012.02.15
  • Accepted : 2012.05.29
  • Published : 2012.06.16
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Abstract

Honey is produced by bees from nectar collected from nearby flowers. Sometimes, honey produced from the Rhododendron species is contaminated by Grayanotoxin (GTX) in Nepal and other countries. There have been reports of GTX intoxication, also known as 'mad honey disease', from honey produced in countries other than Korea. The importation of wild honey has been prohibited by the Korean Food and Drug Administration since 2005, yet it is still distributed within Korea by the occasional tourist. We report a case of GTX intoxication from contaminated honey which included the symptoms of nausea, vomiting, general weakness, dizziness, blurred vision, hypotension and sinus bradycardia. By means of infusion with normal saline and atropine sulfate, the patient's condition fully recovered within 8 hours of hospital admission, and she was discharged without any complications.

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