Toxicity of Salvia officinalis in a newborn and a child: an alarming report.

Although it is widely believed that herbal products are beneficial to the health, some herbal products can result in serious adverse effects, such as epileptic seizures, especially in children who are particularly susceptible. Sage oil contains well-known convulsant substances such as thujone, camphor, and cineole in different proportions. We report 2 cases, those of a newborn and a toddler, who experienced generalized tonic-clonic seizures after accidental exposure to sage oil. No other causes of seizure were detected by our clinical inquiries in either of the patients. The seizures occurred as an isolated event in the toddler, but in a repeated manner in the newborn; both patients experienced good outcomes. In any case of a first seizure of unexplained origin, the possibility of exposure to a herbal product should be kept in mind. Parents should be informed about the pros and cons of these untested remedies, which are presented as an alternative to conventional medicine.

Physiological periostitis in a 2.5-month-old baby.

Periosteal reaction has different etiologies in early infancy. Physiological periostitis is a well-documented X-ray finding seen in both preterm and term babies aged between 1-6 months and can easily be misdiagnosed as child abuse or pathological periostitis. Here, we present a 2.5-month-old infant admitted with a history of fever, swollen right upper arm after vaccination and X-rays findings revealing periosteal reactions on both sides of the humeri, radii, tibiae and femora. Initial diagnosis was child abuse or congenital syphilis. Due to the normal physical findings and normal serological-biochemical data, physiological periostitis was diagnosed. Physiological periostitis should also be considered in patients with periosteal reactions of the long bones in infants aged between 1-6 months.