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Lassa Fever
Published in James H. S. Gear, CRC Handbook of Viral and Rickettsial Hemorrhagic Fevers, 2019
J. H. S. Gear, Margaretha Isaäcson
As the chief mechanism of transmission to humans involves contamination of food with virus-containing urine from the wild rodent reservoir, preventive measures must include both rodent control and protection of stored foods. Rodent control may generally be achieved by trapping or poisoning. Great care must be exercised when handling trapped animals which may have urinated in fright and, in the process, contaminated the traps with Lassa virus. In a case-control study it was shown that a 2- to 3-fold reduction of rodents obtained by trapping was insufficient to significantly reduce the Lassa seroconversion rate of the people in the houses where trapping had been done.31 The use of rodenticides may be preferred but is associated with danger to children and domestic animals if not practiced with care.
Rodenticides
Published in Frank A. Barile, Barile’s Clinical Toxicology, 2019
Rodenticides are a diverse group of chemically and structurally unrelated compounds. Unlike the herbicides and insecticides, whose toxicity is uniformly categorized according to their chemical classification, the rodenticides are functionally organized according to their general category and their toxicity in rodents (LD50), as outlined in Table 30.1. In addition, the substances differ in their mechanisms of action, clinical toxicity, effective doses, structural formulas, sources, and other uses.
Pesticides
Published in David J. George, Poisons, 2017
Metal phosphide compounds are commonly used by licensed exterminators. These compounds react with moisture and produce phosphine gas, which is extremely toxic. Phosphine blocks many cellular processes and causes multisystem organ failure leading to death. Other commercially available rodenticides act as either neurotoxins, cardiotoxins, or disrupt critical metabolic processes. Rodenticides are rather nonspecific and can poison birds and other wildlife, pets, and humans. Older rodenticides containing discontinued and unlicensed substances can still be found in barns, attics, and other neglected storage areas. Unapproved pesticide products can also be imported illegally by individuals who obtain them from friends or relatives living outside the United States.
An outbreak of severe coagulopathy in northern Israel among users of illicit synthetic cannabinoids adulterated with brodifacoum
Published in Clinical Toxicology, 2023
Yael Lurie, Yona Nadir, Ron Hoffman, Asaf Miller, Edna Efrati, Gil Ring, Dana Sonenfeld, Nitai Bar, Hisam Zaidani, Alexander Strizevsky, Mahdi Asali, Ophir Lavon, Daniel Kurnik
We report a large outbreak of severe coagulopathy among users of synthetic cannabinoids adulterated with brodifacoum. Brodifacoum is a long-acting anticoagulant rodenticide that, similarly to the therapeutic oral anticoagulant warfarin, inhibits vitamin K-2,3 epoxide reductase, thus reducing the formation of reduced vitamin K, a cofactor in the γ-carboxylation or post-synthetic modification of clotting factors II, VII, IX and X. Like all long-acting anticoagulant rodenticides, brodifacoum is highly lipophilic, has a long biological half-life (16 to 62 days) [13], and has an approximately 15-fold greater potency than warfarin (IC50 = 0.15 μM for rat microsomal vitamin K-2,3 epoxide reductase, compared to 2.2 μM for warfarin) [14]. Long-acting anticoagulant rodenticides are widely used in agricultural and urban rodent control and encountered in the medical context, mainly after unsupervised ingestion by young children or intentional ingestions by adults [15,16]. Long-acting anticoagulant rodenticides are well absorbed via the gastrointestinal tract, but both animal studies and human case reports provide evidence for effective absorption through the respiratory tract [17–19], explaining the systemic exposure in our patients, almost all of whom were exposed by inhalation.
Refractory cardiogenic shock caused by zinc phosphide toxicity
Published in Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings, 2023
Nitish Mittal, Mohamed Elmassry, Mostafa Abohelwa
Metal phosphides, such as zinc phosphide and aluminum phosphide, are among the most potent rodenticides. Zinc phosphide is used by farmers worldwide. Upon ingestion, zinc phosphide reacts with stomach acid to form phosphine gas, a lethal compound that gets absorbed into the bloodstream quickly.1 The phosphine mainly targets cells in the heart, liver, and lungs and stops the cells from producing energy, leading to their death. The phosphine gas inhibits the oxidative phosphorylation within the cells of the heart, leading to myocardial stunning. Death usually occurs from cardiac arrhythmias and refractory cardiogenic shock. Zinc phosphide poisoning is a growing concern worldwide, especially in Asian communities. A retrospective study in Tehran, Iran, reported 102 patients with zinc phosphide poisoning admitted at a single referral center over the course of 3 years.2 Moreover, metal phosphide poisoning is a prevalent form of suicide in rural areas of Northern India.3 Previous reports have highlighted the radio-opaque nature of the substance along with cardiac, pulmonary, and abdominal imaging.2 Here, we present a 20-year-old man with refractory cardiogenic shock due to zinc phosphide ingestion.
An analytical strategy for the identification of carbamates, toxic alkaloids, phenobarbital and warfarin in stomach contents from suspected poisoned animals by thin-layer chromatography/ultraviolet detection
Published in Toxicology Mechanisms and Methods, 2019
André Valle de Bairros, Diulia Dias, André Bezerra, Roger Wagner, Bruna Klein, Glaucia Kommers, Eliza Stefanon, Ana Miguel Pego
Other toxic agents such as alkaloids from Nux vomica, mainly strychnine and brucine (STY and BRU), are considered classic rodenticides. These alkaloids act as antagonists of the glycine receptor, increasing glycine levels in the synaptic cleft and promoting large muscle contractions and violent convulsions. Death occurs by asphyxiation due to paralysis of central nervous system respiration control and/or exhaustive seizure (Melo and Silva Junior 2005; Cowan and Blakley 2015). Methomyl (MET) and carbofuran (CAR) are pesticides from the carbamate class, considered cholinesterase enzyme inhibitors and responsible for the increase in acetylcholine levels in muscarinic and nicotinic receptors. As a consequence, sweating, salivation and difficulty breathing are some of toxic effects that can progress to respiratory failure and even death (Eddleston and Konickx 2014; Gonçalves et al. 2017). In order to perform toxicological analysis on these xenobiotics, chromatographic methods are commonly used, such as thin-layer chromatography (TLC) (Stahr et al. 1981; Rengel and Friedrich 1993; Cazenave et al. 2005; Xavier et al. 2007; Kuwayama et al. 2012).