Jamaican vomiting sickness

Overview

An acute and frequently fatal vomiting disease associated with central nervous system symptoms and marked hypoglycaemia, caused by eating unripe ackee fruit of Blighia spaida, a tree common in jamaica.

Symptoms

* Vomiting * Convulsions * Death

Causes

Jamaican vomiting sickness is an acute illness caused by the toxin hypoglycin A, which is present in unripened fruit of the ackee tree.

Treatment

Depending on poison: airway management, CPR, poison antidote, patient placed on left side, supportive care (I.V. fluid replacement, oxygen therapy, seizure precautions)