ABSTRACT
Toxic hepatitis has been reported as a major cause of acute hepatitis, but its potential induction by herbal remedies and/or health foods is usually neglected. We experienced a case of toxic hepatitis associated with Polygoni multiflori, a Chinese herb commonly known as Ho-Shou-Wu. A 54-year-old woman consumed Ho-Shou-Wu for 1 month, after which she experienced fatigue and overall weakness. A diagnosis of toxic hepatitis was made based on her clinical history, the findings for viral markers and other laboratory data, and ultrasonography. Her condition improved considerably after she stopped taking Ho-Shou-Wu. However, she resumed taking Ho-Shou-Wu immediately after discharge from hospital, which aggravated her symptoms and liver function. She was immediately readmitted and stopped taking Ho-Shou-Wu. Her relapse into hepatitis immediate after resuming consumption of the herb is strongly indicative of the validity of Koch's postulate in this case.
Subject(s)
Female , Humans , Middle Aged , Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury/diagnosis , Plant Extracts/toxicity , Polygonum/toxicityABSTRACT
There are few reports of hepatitis related to the Chinese Medicine in Korea. Because herbal medicine contains many ingredients, it is confused what ingredient causes the hepatitis. We experienced a case of acute hepatitis developed after consumption of Chinese herbal medicine, Ho-Shou-Wu, for 75 days which contains only one component, Polygonum multiflorum, in a 55 year-old woman. And gradual recovery from hepatitis was observed after stopping the medication. Drug-induced hepatitis was diagnosed with typical clinical course and exclusion of all the possible causes of acute hepatocellular injury. We report this case with review of literature.