Grayanotoxin Poisoning from Honey: A Case Report

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.