ABSTRACT
The number of deaths due to wheat pill poisoning is enormous and despite aggressive management only a few patients survive the fatal effects of the wheat pill poison. Despite the growing number of patients appearing in the emergency departments with this easily available poison in the market, very little effort has been put forth to study the subject scientifically and to prevent the ongoing loss of precious lives. This is a narrative review of the wheat pill poisoning, highlighting the important steps in diagnosis and management. Data sources include Pubmed, Scopus, Medline [1996 to date], Cochrane library and Google scholar. We included all clinical trials, systematic reviews and ongoing cohort studies. Wheat pill [Aluminum Phosphide] poisoning is a lethal toxin and its effective treatment requires prompt diagnosis and early, time-efficient management. Early transfer to a healthcare facility, good resuscitation, diagnosis, monitoring, gastric lavage and supportive therapy are the hallmarks of management and may result in improved outcomes. The governmental and legislative authorities must take appropriate steps towards limiting its availability at the grass-roots level. Aluminum Phosphide poisoning must be a part of the medical students' curriculum and long-term, well-designed comprehensive research studies are required to discover new modalities of treatment
Subject(s)
Humans , Aluminum Compounds/poisoningABSTRACT
Recurrent pleural effusions are relatively uncommon and as clinicians we keep drug induced pleural effusion lower in our list of differentials. Pramipexole induced recurrent pleural effusion can be life threatening if not recognized early and has been reported in literature only a few times. A 44 years old man with history of traumatic brain injury presented with pneumonitis and p leural effusion which was tapped. Patient returned with pleural effusion within 2 weeks and a careful analysis of all the risk factor and drugs revealed that the most likely etiology was chronic use of Pramipexole leading to recurrent pleural effusion and early pulmonary fibrosis. Pramipexole induced recurrent pleural effusion can cause significant morbidity and should be recognized early. Physician prescribing this medication should be aware of this rare side effect of the medication