Was Alexander the Great poisoned?

Alexander the Great 3 out of 5 stars Was the death of Alexander the Great due to poisoning? Was it Veratrum album? Schep LJ et al. Clin Toxicol 2013 Dec 26 [Epub ahead of print] Abstract Although accounts of the events leading up to the death of Alexander the Great (356-323 BC) vary, many versions describe a sudden onset of abdominal pain following a banquet featuring abundant amounts of wine. This was followed by weakness and trouble walking or speaking. He may or may not have developed fever. Symptoms persisted for 11 or 12 days before he died. Since that time, historians and commentators have debated about what caused the death, and whether or not Alexander was poisoned. Proposed diagnoses have included typhoid fever, acute pancreatitis, perforated peptic ulcer, malaria, and even West Nile fever. Speculations about toxicological causes have considered aconite, strychnine, arsenic, poison hemlock, wormwood, henbane, and calicheamicin — a potent toxin that may have been produced by bacterium in the River Styx (Mavroneri). This interesting but highly speculative paper suggests that Alexander may in fact have been poisoned, and that the agent may have been Veratrum album, a toxic plant of the lily family.  According to Auerbach’s Wilderness Medicine (6th edition): [Veratrum] alkaloids are extremely toxic and rapidly increase permeability of voltage-sensitive sodium channels in excitable cell membranes. This results in initial depolarization and then subsequent l...
Source: The Poison Review - Category: Toxicology Authors: Tags: Medical alexander the great death poisoning toxicology history veratrum album Source Type: news