VEGETAL FOOD POISONING 



195 



in the stomach, abdominal pains, burning in the fauces, nausea, 

 severe headache, collapse, and fainting. Death may occur in a few 

 hours from paralysis of the heart or respirations. The mortality is 

 high, being said to be more than 68 per cent. 



The treatment is to empty the stomach with an emetic and to 

 give stimulants, especially hypodermics of strychnine. 



Post-Mortem Decomposition. 



Post-mortem changes are much more rapid in the tropics than in 

 the Temperate Zone, and, therefore, food is quickly apt to become 

 poisonous. Meat is especially liable to become infected with 

 saprophytic or pathogenic micro-organisms, especially Bacillus para- 

 typhosus B (Schotmiiller) and the bacillus of Gaertner, more rarely 

 B. paratyphosus A (Schotmiiller). These micro-organisms give rise 

 to ptomaines, which cause symptoms of irritant poisoning (kreo- 

 toxismus), which may be so severe as to resemble those of cholera. 

 The treatment is to remove the poison by emetics if necessary and 

 purgatives, in the meanwhile keeping up the heart's action by 

 means of warm applications, stimulants, and cardiac tonics. When 

 collapse sets in, saline hypodermic injections should be given. As 

 soon as the acute symptoms subside, the bowel should be disinfected 

 -with small doses of calomel, salol, or naphthol. 



2. VEGETAL FOOD POISONING. 



Sitotoxismus, or vegetal food poisoning, is caused by many kinds 

 of vegetal food, and ought to be well known, but, unfortunately, is 

 by no means on a scientific basis in the tropics. 



Ergotism, well known in the temperate regions, is not important 

 in the tropics; but, on the other hand, there is lathyrism, believed 

 to be due to Lathyrus sativus, and other species of the same genus— 

 loliismus, due to Lolium temulentum ; and paspalismus, due to 

 Paspalum scrobiculatum- — ^which are known to occur in India. Less 

 known is atriplicismus, which is described in China. 



Kirke has drawn attention to poisoning by Cystisus cadjan, by 

 which he probably means Dolichus catjana (Linne), named Vigna 

 catjang^ (Walp) by Dragendorff, and also by Dolichos filosa (Klein), 

 which is the same as Vigna filosa (Savi), both of which are used as 

 foods. With regard to the former, the native name of which is urhur 

 or toar, he says it mainly affects the poorer classes, as they do not 

 remove the outer skin before eating it. The symptoms in the order 

 of appearance are as follows :^ — Urticaria, sense of heat in the 

 stomach, redness of the lining membrane of the mouth, apparent 

 elongation of the teeth (by this must be meant shrinking of the 

 gums), discoloration, bronzing of the skin, sponginess of the nails, 

 burning of the hands and feet, a dry, harsh, cracked condition of 

 the cuticle of the hands and feet, and deep longitudinal cracks in 

 the heels. Rheumatic pains, with thickening of the periosteum, 

 especially of the shins, and changes in the joints are also noticed. 



