Epidemic Dropsy
Definition
The clinical syndrome caused by sanguinarine from argemone-oil-adulterated mustard oil: bilateral pitting oedema, erythema with brownish discolouration, glaucoma from trabecular meshwork permeability changes, and in severe cases congestive cardiac failure.
- Cause
- Sanguinarine from argemone-oil-adulterated mustard oil
- Key signs
- Bilateral pitting oedema, erythema, glaucoma
- Severe outcome
- Congestive cardiac failure
Common questions
How does sanguinarine cause the glaucoma seen in epidemic dropsy?+
Sanguinarine increases permeability of the trabecular meshwork, the tissue that normally drains fluid from the eye, so drainage is impaired, intraocular pressure rises, and glaucoma follows as a consequence of that structural change rather than a separate mechanism.
Why is epidemic dropsy relevant to forensic toxicology specifically?+
Outbreaks are traced back through toxicological and food-adulteration analysis to identify argemone contamination in a specific batch or supply chain of mustard oil, connecting a clinical mass-poisoning event to a criminal or regulatory adulteration source.
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