Diagnosis of aluminum phosphide poisoning using a new analytical approach: forensic application to a lethal intoxication

Abstract

Aluminum phosphide (AlP) is an effective and cheap pesticide that is commonly used worldwide, but it is also a common cause of human poisoning and carries a high mortality rate. AlP reacts with moisture in air, water, and hydrochloric acid in the stomach to produce phosphine (PH) gas. Two routes of exposure are ingestion of AlP and inhalation of phosphine generated by the action of moisture on AlP. Absorbed phosphine is rapidly metabolized into phosphite and hypophosphite. A method is described for the analysis of the phosphine metabolites in various biological matrices. The method involves reacting the sample with zinc and aqueous HSO in a volatile organic analysis vial. The metabolites were transformed into phosphine gas and then analyzed by headspace gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (HS-GC-MS). This method is capable of detecting quantities of PH as low as 0.2 μg/mL in a sample. After validation, the method was applied to animal experiments and a real case of human AlP intoxication. This approach has the advantage of detecting metabolites of PH, in case the PH was converted, and can be considered a useful additional tool for the diagnosis of AlP poisoning in forensic science.

Dihydroxyacetone as a definitive treatment for aluminium phosphide poisoning in rats

“…Whatever the mechanism(s), the most important goal in poisoning management is to prevent death, which has been ignored by many animal studies of AlP poisoning. Most of them were focused on alleviating symptoms instead of addressing this key issue (5,10,11,27,43,44). Our study, in turn, has identified DHA as a promising treatment for patients poisoned with rice tablets.…”

“…It is the most common cause of death among the residents of developing countries such as Iran and India, with the rate of 70-100 %. Death often occurs during the first 12 to 24 h of poisoning (4,5).…”

Mortality from aluminum phosphide poisoning in Kermanshah Province, Iran: characteristics and predictive factors

“…Aluminum phosphide (ALP) is a highly dangerous pesticide that is popularly referred to in Iran as rice tablets [ 3 , 4 ]. ALP is a common cause of acute poisoning and death in many developing countries, especially in Asia, and it usually has high fatality rates (60-90%) [ 5 - 11 ]. This pesticide was first introduced in India, where roughly 15,000 accidental or intentional poisonings take place annually, with a reported mortality rate of roughly 67% [ 12 ].…”

Inhalational Wheat-pill Poisoning: A Household Chemical Warfare Agent

“…Another article reviewed favorably the headspace gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (HS-GC-MS). According to the authors, it could measure even minute quantities of phosphine gas [8].…”