Accidental plant poisoning with Colchicum autumnale: report of two cases.

Colchicine poisoning is a rare but serious and potentially fatal event, which results from food poisoning or overdose with drugs containing colchicine, with no currently available antidote. We report two cases of plant poisoning with Colchicum autumnale, in which the patients had identical initial symptoms but developed extremely different clinical courses. One patient recovered after only moderate gastroenteritis and liver injury, whereas the other died of rapid progressive multiple organ failure 52 h after the plant ingestion. We recommend that all patients suspected of colchicine intoxication due to its unpredictable outcome should be managed according to the principles of intensive care, irrespective of the actual degree of poisoning.

Acute renal failure complicating nonfulminant hepatitis a in HLA-B27 positive patient.

Here we report the case of a previously healthy 32-year-old HLA B27 positive male who developed completely reversible acute oliguric renal failure in the course of nonfulminant hepatitis A infection. This is a rare complication of uncertain etiology. B27 positive individuals are prone to a number of immune system derangements including overreacting in interactions with some microbiologic agents. We made our consideration on the basis of some experimental models and the presumed pathogenesis of reactive arthritis in these individuals. As a result here we postulate a hepatitis A virus-triggered, immune mediated mechanism of renal injury restricted to genetically susceptible (i.e. B27 positive) individuals. In regard to this hypothesis we warrant additional HLA-profiles and future similar cases for further confirms and conclusions.