A Homeopathic Disaster: Case Report of Turpentine Toxicity (P4.399)

Conclusions: Turpentine is obtained from the distillation of tree resin. It is used topically for treatment of lice, or orally for intestinal parasite eradication. In research, turpentine is used in animal models to induce systemic inflammation by up-regulating pro-inflammatory cytokines. It is also found to substantially reduce cholesterol. Toxicity results in gastroenteritis, kidney failure, respiratory failure, hemodynamic instability, encephalitis and coma. We propose that patient’s acute illness was secondary to turpentine toxicity and likely contributed to patient’s autoimmune co-morbidities given its association of inducing a pro-inflammatory state. It is very important to obtain history of homeopathic medications and educate the community about the risks involved with unregulated medications.Disclosure: Dr. MacCallum has nothing to disclose. Dr. Towfighi has nothing to disclose.
Source: Neurology - Category: Neurology Authors: Tags: General Neurology: Imaging in Clinical Diagnosis Source Type: research