Toadstool Poisoning and its Treatment 



In one of my experiments on a dog, the heart stopped for iK min- 

 utes and then began beating again, the circulation soon recovering. 



Late in the poisoning the heart beats may be rapid and feeble and the 

 blood pressure low. The lowered blood pressure is largely due to 

 dilatation of the small blood vessels resulting from a loss of control over 

 them by the nerve center which normally keeps the arterioles in a state 

 of partial contraction. 



The inhibition of the heart is due to the action of the well-known 

 alkaloid muscarine upon nerve ganglia in the heart. The contraction 

 of the pupil and the increased secretory activity of the glands are also 

 due to this substance which was discovered by Schmideberg and Koppe 

 in 1869. 



It was soon found that although dogs recovered from the immediate 

 or early effects (i. e., from the muscarine) of enormous quantities of toad- 

 stools, they succumbed from the late effects of mncJi smaller quantities. 

 Atropine fails to avert this result from the late effect, whether given be- 

 fore the poison, with it, or after it. The inhibition of the heart passes 

 off long before death occurs. Late death does not appear to be due to 

 muscarine. 



All these facts put together point to the existence of some other 

 poison or poisons in the Amanita muscaria to which atropine is not an 

 antidote. 



This peculiar poisoning causing death so late will be discussed again 

 after considering the other poisonous mushrooms as they act similarly. 



Gastro-intestinal symptoms were not as common in my experiments 

 with Amanita muscaria as with the Amanita phalloides. Vomiting and 

 purging occasionally occurred early, but much more frequently late in 

 the poisoning and often not at all. 



Convulsions did not occur in any of the animals poisoned by this 

 fungus. Convulsions are recorded in some cases of poisoning in man, 

 but not so constantly as with the A. phalloides and A. verna. Where 

 they occurred either a large amount had been taken (as in Prentiss' 

 case) or there is some doubt about the Amanita muscaria having been 

 the only toadstool eaten (as in Caglieri's cases). Frogs are very easily 

 thrown into spasms, but no spasms were observed, even in fatal poison- 

 ing of them by this toadstool. 



Regarding cerebral symptoms, little can be said except that uncon- 

 sciousness and coma may come on early and persist till death. In cases 



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