Magic truffle intoxication: A case report
Emergency Care Journal – June 27, 2022
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
Emerging hallucinogenic mushrooms present diagnostic challenges in Medicine. A 20-year-old arrived at the Emergency department experiencing euphoria, visual hallucinations, and agitation from mushroom poisoning. Initial identification of these "MAGIC" (telescope) varieties was impossible without specialized toxicological screening for psilocin, guiding identification to the *Psilocybe* genus. The patient recovered within 10 hours. Better recognition of psychedelics and their chemical synthesis alkaloids is crucial for optimal Complementary and Alternative Medicine Studies management and poison control.
Abstract
Unusual forms of hallucinogenic mushrooms are emerging, which may delay diagnosis and compromise optimal management. Here, we discuss clinical and biological findings in a case of “magic mushroom” intoxication in a 20-year-old man who was brought to hospital emergency department in a state of euphoria, disorientation, intense visual hallucinations, episodic amnesia and agitation requiring physical restraint. The patient’s family brought intact specimens of the consumed product, without any health professional being able to identify it. Toxicological screening detected psilocin in urine and in the unknown mushrooms, allowing guiding the mushroom identification towards the Psilocybes genus. Ten hours post-ingestion, the patient was discharged asymptomatic. We believe that recognition of the unusual form of hallucinogenic mushroom presented here by emergency physicians might contribute to better diagnosis and subsequent optimal management, especially since hallucinogenic substances are not routinely tested in toxicological analyses.