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- Title
Herbal remedies as a potential cause of hypoadrenalism.
- Authors
Patel, Mihir; Newell, Rebecca; Hillier, Matthew; Ramalingam, Ramanan
- Abstract
A 37-year-old woman presented with nausea, vomiting and headache. She was found to be profoundly hyponatraemic with a sodium of 121 mmol/L, which deteriorated following a fluid challenge. An initial hyponatraemia screen identified adrenal insufficiency, with cortisol of 48 nmol/L. History confirmed she had been taking the herbal plant, ashwagandha. After 3 days of fluid restriction and steroid replacement, her sodium returned to normal (139 mmol/L). This article reviews the possible harmful effects of over-the-counter herbal remedies and highlights the importance of considering a wide differential diagnosis in patients presenting with non-specific symptoms.
- Subjects
DIFFERENTIAL diagnosis; HERBAL medicine; ADRENAL insufficiency; FLUID therapy; HEADACHE; HYDROCORTISONE; HEMODYNAMICS; SODIUM; HORMONE therapy; HYPONATREMIA; VOMITING; NAUSEA
- Publication
British Journal of Hospital Medicine (17508460), 2024, Vol 85, Issue 6, p1
- ISSN
1750-8460
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.12968/hmed.2024.0038