Warning about the situation of self-medication and use of drugs and medicinal herbs to treat diseases

Warning of medicinal poisoning

In mountainous districtsQuy ChauSince the beginning of 2023, there have been 3 cases of poisoning from the leaves of the Indian laurel tree that required hospitalization. The latest patient is Ms. Lang Thi Kh. (70 years old), residing in Chau Nga commune (Quy Chau), who was taken to the Quy Chau District Medical Center for emergency treatment by her family on May 10.

Through examination and testing, the doctors found that the patient had pale skin, pale mucous membranes, red blood cells of 1.4 million/4.5 million (normal), and a decrease of Hst of 40/130 normal... The doctors diagnosed the patient with hemolysis, kidney failure, acute tubular nephritis and needed emergency care, and transferred her to the upper level, Nghe An General Hospital for treatment and blood filtration. After examining her medical condition, it was known that Ms. Lang Thi Kh. had used the leaves of the Indian laurel tree to treat constipation and was poisoned.

Patient Lang Thi Kh. had to be hospitalized due to eating Indian laurel leaves to treat constipation. Photo: Quy Chau District Medical Center

Doctor Dang Tan Minh - Director of Quy Chau District Medical Center said: In our country, the plant is also known by other names such as luc mai, mo trang, rau mai, rau moi or po cho gai (Thai language). The plant often grows wild in the provinces of Nghe An, Thanh Hoa, Ha Tinh, Ha Giang, Bac Can, Thai Nguyen, Hoa Binh... The plant is a highly toxic herb, has medicinal properties but when used, it must be prescribed by a doctor.

The final unit that receives and treats patients poisoned by plants, flowers, and medicinal herbs in Nghe An is the Poison Control Department of Nghe An General Hospital. According to doctors, not counting cases of mass poisoning with many people, there are about 15-20 cases of individual poisoning treated here each month. The most common are poisoning by Loc Mai leaves; poisoning by Aconite leaves (suicide or accidental ingestion); poisoning by medicinal herbs in wine (plants of unknown origin or Mu Tun plants) and poisoning by Eastern medicine pills.

Leaves of the money tree. Photo: source

Poisoning conditions are also very diverse, with varying degrees of severity and danger. With poison ivy, patients are at risk of cardiac arrest, arrhythmia leading to death. Poison ivy leaves cause hemolysis, causing severe anemia. Poisoning from soaked alcohol causes brain damage. Poisoning from the use of medicinal herbs and oriental medicines of unknown origin causes multiple organ failure and death.

For patients who are diagnosed with poisoning early, when admitted to the hospital, the doctor will prescribe active dialysis and use effective treatment measures, so the chance of survival is very high. However, there are many patients who are diagnosed late and have permanent brain damage or metabolic acidosis leading to death.

However, treating patients with poisoning is very difficult. This is because there are many types of medicinal plants that cause poisoning. The patients themselves do not know clearly what type of medicinal plant they have used. Each medicinal plant has many toxic components, testing each component is very difficult and expensive, and it is even impossible to test to accurately determine the poison that the patient has.

Deadly misconceptions

Master, Doctor Nguyen Van Thuy - Head of the Anti-Poison Department noted 3 common types of poisoning due to users' lack of understanding and misconceptions:

Doctor Nguyen Van Thuy examines and treats a patient with severe poisoning. Photo: Thanh Chung

Firstly, there is poisoning from alcohol soaked with medicinal herbs of unknown origin and soaked with the plant mu tun. A typical example is the poisoning case in Quynh Thach commune, districtQuynh Luuon February 13, 2023, causing 5 people to be infected (currently, 1 case is still in a coma and is being treated at Bach Mai Hospital). Or the case of "healthy" alcohol poisoning soaked in forest plants that caused 3 people in a family to die in Cha Lan village, Huu Lap commune, Ky Son district in 2018.

Many people do not know that this plant contains salicylate (used to relieve pain, has certain toxicity). If the dosage and usage are not controlled, salicylate poisoning can lead to serious health consequences. Patients experience dizziness, nausea, tinnitus, convulsions, coma, low blood pressure, brain damage and kidney damage, and are very susceptible to death.

Second, poisoning from a diabetes drug originating from the South. This drug was mixed with phenformin (phenformin is a diabetes drug, but is no longer licensed for circulation in many countries around the world and Vietnam due to the risk of metabolic acidosis, even causing death). There have been cases of patients with septic shock, multiple organ failure and death after using the drug.

Patients in the medicinal wine poisoning case that occurred in Quynh Luu district. Photo: Document

Third, poisoning due to the use of homemade drugs of unknown ingredients and origin, advertised and rumored by traditional healers and "miracle doctors" on the Internet as being effective in treatment. Many people after using these medicines and medicinal products have been poisoned, suffered acute liver and kidney failure due to the presence of heavy metals such as lead, zinc, and copper in the ingredients of the drugs. Children are even among those poisoned. People with this type of poisoning are very difficult to recover and can easily die.

Be careful with "miracle doctors"

Specialist II Doctor Bui Thanh Hai - Nghe An Province Oriental Medicine Association shared a worrying reality: Vietnam has abundant medicinal resources, many traditional remedies, so many people choose to use Oriental medicine because it is benign. However, taking advantage of this mentality, many drugs of unknown origin, untested quality, unlicensed but widely sold have appeared on the market.

There are even people who have no expertise in "stealing" prescriptions, buying herbs to make them themselves, labeling them, advertising them on the internet and selling them to users. There are also some "witch doctors" who combine Eastern and Western medicine in a very dangerous way when making traditional medicine pills but leaving out old generation Western medicines (very strong effects, many side effects)... Hospitals have been receiving and treating many cases of poisoning due to taking traditional medicine and traditional medicine of unknown origin.

When there is a need to use traditional medicine, people should go to hospitals with traditional medicine departments or licensed traditional medicine clinics to get specific advice and instructions. Photo: Document

People need to be alert when choosing a treatment method, be vigilant and stay away from word of mouth or advertising images of traditional healers and miracle doctors on social networks and the internet. In addition, everyone also needs to be aware that traditional medicine, oriental medicine or modern medicine cannot be used arbitrarily, without a doctor's prescription and traditional medicine is not benign, has fewer side effects than modern medicine. Arbitrary use of traditional medicine or oriental medicine leading to emergency hospitalization is not uncommon.

To be safer, when there is a need to use traditional medicine, people should go to traditional medicine hospitals, hospitals with Traditional Medicine Departments, traditional medicine clinics (licensed by the Department of Health) for diagnosis and treatment - Specialist II Doctor Bui Thanh Hai recommends.

Thanh Chung