A case of severe paraquat poisoning treated by continuous hemodiafiltration without sequelae

Abstract

Background In a suicide attempt, a 49‐year‐old male ingested pesticides. He arrived at the hospital restless and vomiting blue liquid. Case Presentation The patient was diagnosed with paraquat poisoning at a lethal dose and experienced renal dysfunction during treatment. He underwent continuous hemodiafiltration (CHDF). Hemodialysis was temporarily initiated and found to improve renal function. He was discharged on day 36 in good condition. He remains well with only mild renal impairment and no pulmonary fibrosis, 240 days after the incident. The fatality rate of paraquat poisoning is approximately 80%, regardless of the treatment. Early hemodialysis combined with CHDF within 4 h has been reported to be effective. In this case, CHDF was initiated approximately 3 h after paraquat administration and showed a successful outcome. Conclusion CHDF should be performed as soon as possible to treat paraquat poisoning.

Keywords

• Continuous hemodiafiltration
• paraquat
• pesticides
• pulmonary fibrosis
• suicide