MINI REVIEW article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Disaster and Emergency Medicine
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1633727
Caution on the severe damage of Gelsemium elegans poisoning: A Case Report on Family Poisoning and Systematic Review
Provisionally accepted
- 1Department of Emergency, Eighth Clinical Medical College, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Foshan, China
- 2Foshan Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Foshan, China
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Objective: This study reports a familial Gelsemium elegans poisoning case and systematically evaluates the efficacy of gastric lavage in G. elegans intoxication through a meta-analysis.We systematically searched PubMed, Web of Science, CNKI, and Wanfang Data (2000Data ( -2024)). Eligible randomized controlled trials and case reports comparing gastric lavage versus non-lavage approaches were included. Data were extracted from published studies, and pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using Mantel-Haenszel random-effects models.Results: Thirteen studies involving 160 patients demonstrated an overall in-hospital mortality of 18.75%. Gastric lavage suggested potential survival benefit compared to controls (OR 0.39; 95% CI 0.15-0.99; p=0.62).G. elegans poisoning is life-threatening, with severe cases rapidly progressing to respiratory/circulatory failure requiring urgent support. Gastric lavage may offer survival advantage in hemodynamically stable patients when performed with airway protection. Prompt respiratory support should be prioritized in the therapeutic management.
Keywords: Gelsemium elegans, Poisoning, review - systematic, respiratory depression, Gastric Lavage
Received: 23 May 2025; Accepted: 22 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Zhao, Shen, Xiao, Wang, Fu and Liang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Zhangrong Liang, Department of Emergency, Eighth Clinical Medical College, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Foshan, China
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