Title of article :
Plant toxins and acute medicinal plant poisoning in children: A systematic literature review
Author/Authors :
Ghorani‑Azam, Adel Mashhad University of Medical Sciences , Sepahi, Samaneh Mashhad University of Medical Sciences , Riahi‑Zanjani, Bamdad Mashhad University of Medical Sciences , Alizadeh Ghamsari, Anahita Mashhad University of Medical Sciences , Mohajeri, Ahmad Mashhad University of Medical Sciences , Balali‑Mood, Mahdi Mashhad University of Medical Sciences
Abstract :
Background: For many years, medicinal plants and herbal therapy have been widely used in different societies for the treatment
of various diseases. Besides their therapeutic potency, some of the medicinal plants have strong toxicity in human, especially
in children and elderly. Despite common beliefs that natural products are safe, there have been few reports on their toxicities.
Materials and Methods: In the present study, we aimed to systematically review the literature wherein acute plant poisoning and
herbal intoxication have been reported in pediatric patients. After literature search and selection of the appropriate documents,
the desired data were extracted and described qualitatively. Results: A total of 127 articles with overall 1453 intoxicated cases were
collected. The results of this study showed that some medicinal plants can cause acute poisoning and complications such as hepatic
and renal failure in children. Conclusion: The findings of this survey showed that acute plant poisoning can be life‑threatening in
children, and since a single‑ingested dose of toxic plants can cause acute poisoning, parents should be aware of these toxic effects
and compare the side effects of self‑medication with its potential benefits.
Keywords :
Herbal medicine , medicinal plant , pediatrics , poisoning , toxicology
Journal title :
Astroparticle Physics
