Generalized convulsions after consuming a large amount of gingko nuts.
We report a 36-year-old woman, without any past or family histories of epilepsy, who presented frequent vomiting and generalized convulsions. About 4 h before the convulsion, she had consumed approximately 70-80 gingko nuts, seeds of Gingko biloba, in an attempt to improve her health. It is important to know that convulsion may be induced if a large amount of gingko nuts is consumed. The neurotoxicity of gingko nuts, particularly their convulsion-inducing effect, should be recognized.
Miwa
H
H
Departments of Neurology, Juntendo University Urayasu Hospital, Chiba, Japan. h_miwa@med.juntendo.ac.jp
Iijima
M
M
Tanaka
S
S
Mizuno
Y
Y
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005517:Foodborne Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D020441:Ginkgo biloba / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D020258:Neurotoxicity Syndromes / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D010946:Plants, Medicinal; D012639:Seeds / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012640:Seizures / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*