A case of paraquat poisoning

Prikazan je slučaj samoubojstvenog otrovanja herbicidom parakvatom sa smrtnim ishodom.A girl eighteen years old drank about 40 ml of the 20% paraquat in order to commit suicide. Five days after the ingestion of the poison she was admitted at the intensive care unit. On admission corrosions of the mucous membrane of the tongue and pharynx were manifest. There were also slight renal lesions with pathological findings in the renal function tests. Gas analyses of the arterial blood showed gas diffusion disturbances in the lungs. Ten days after a shortage of breath was noticeable and was becoming worse until her death on the seventeenth day following the ingestion of paraquat. The treatment consisted of forced diuresis, corticosteroids, antibiotics, cardiotonics and oxygen. Histologically, the most pronounced changes were in the lungs: diffuse interstitial fibrosis and proliferation of bronchiolar epithelium. Changes were also found in the liver, spleen, kidneys, brain, and heart