Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38947441›Full record

ArticleHeliyon2024

Colchicine poisoning: Case report of three homicides in a family.

Yan-Cun Liu, Zi-Kang Zhou, Mu-Ming Yu, Li-Jun Wang, Song-Tao Shou, Yan-Fen Chai

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In one paragraph

Article in Heliyon, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Yan-Cun LiuDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, 300052, China.
Zi-Kang ZhouDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, 300052, China.
Mu-Ming YuDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, 300052, China.
Li-Jun WangDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, 300052, China.
Song-Tao ShouDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, 300052, China.
Yan-Fen ChaiDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, 300052, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Colchicine is a common therapeutic agent for inflammatory conditions such as gout, yet its narrow therapeutic range frequently results in cases of overdose and subsequent poisoning. Acute colchicine poisoning can be difficult to identify due to its nonspecific clinical manifestations, posing a diagnostic challenge for emergency physicians without a clear history of colchicine ingestion. Case presentation: This report describes a tragic case of acute colchicine poisoning that resulted in three familial homicides. The patients presented with fever, abdominal pain, and diarrhea, which rapidly escalated to shock during their emergency department visits. Laboratory tests revealed a marked leukocytosis, mild elevation in procalcitonin (PCT), significantly elevated creatine kinase (CK) and CK-MB levels, and liver function abnormalities. Despite treatment with carbapenem antibiotics and aggressive fluid resuscitation, the patients' condition deteriorated, marked by a progressive decline in leukocytes and neutrophils. Initially misdiagnosed as septic shock, the ineffectiveness of the standard treatment protocols led to a fatal outcome for all three individuals. Conclusion: Emergency physicians should consider acute colchicine poisoning as a differential diagnosis in patients presenting with shock and the following clinical indicators: (1) pronounced increase in peripheral leukocytes with a disproportionate rise in neutrophils; (2) discordance between the level of serum procalcitonin and the severity of presumed septic shock; (3) early increase in serum creatine kinase (CK) and CK-MB; (4) poor response to antibiotics and resuscitative efforts, accompanied by a continuous decrease in white blood cells and neutrophils. This case underscores the critical need for awareness of colchicine toxicity in the emergency setting, particularly when the clinical presentation mimics septic shock but fails to respond to standard treatments.

Indexed as

Case reportColchicine poisoningHomicidesProcalcitoninSeptic shock

Identifiers

PMID38947441
PMCPMC11214350

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.