Podophyllum toxicity: a report of a fatal case and a review of the literature.

A 59-yr-old male ingested 10 g of podophyllum in a fatal suicide attempt. Previously unreported nuclear and cytoplasmic changes were observed in circulating leukocytes. Symptoms did not occur until 10 h after ingestion with loss of reflexes, coma, and a marked lactic acidosis. Despite hemoperfusion, the patient expired 39 h after ingestion. The literature on podophyllum toxicity is reviewed.