A Case of Aconitum Intoxication After Ingestion of a Large Amount of Aconitine Decoction in a Suicide Attempt

Aconitine has been used as a folk remedy for centuries to treat pain and as an inotropic agent. However, because its therapeutic range is very narrow, it often causes many side effects when not controlled carefully. These include nausea, vomiting, paresthesia, cardiac arrhythmia and hypotension. Most of the aconitine intoxication cases have been attributed to accidental overdose of aconitine-containing medicines. In this case, a 53-year-old woman attempted suicide by intentionally overdosing herself with an aconitine decoction. She suffered paresthesia in both arms and showed junctional rhythm on an electrocardiogram at admission. Here we report that early gastric lavage and other symptomatic therapies were helpful for treating aconitine intoxication. Similar to intoxication with other drugs, these supportive measures can prevent the patient’s hospitalization.