A case of fatal endrin poisoning.

Ingestion of 12 g of endrin by a 49-year-old man caused convulsions persisting for 4 days, hypersalivation, hyperthermia, renal insufficiency, thrombocytopenia and recurrent hypotension. Death followed after 11 days, due to pulmonary complications (infection and haemorrhage) and hypoxaemia causing bradycardia and cardiac arrest. Endrin and dieldrin concentrations in blood 4 hours, 6 and 11 days after ingestion were respectively 450, 86 and 71 micrograms/l for endrin and 60, 19 and 19 micrograms/l for dieldrin. Dieldrin was also present, possibly because the endrin preparation contained traces of dieldrin. Endrin concentrations 11 days after ingestion were 0.071 mg/l in blood, in adipose tissue 89.5 mg/kg, in the heart 0.87 mg/kg, in the brain 0.89 mg/kg, in the kidneys 0.55 mg/kg and in the liver 1.32 mg/kg.