botanical name(s): Helleborus niger
synonyms: black hellebore, Christmas rose
part(s) used: rhizome
qualities:
affinities: heart
actions:
dosage:
» tincture: 1/10 - 3 drops (0.006 - 0.2 ml.)
therapy:
toxicity: 4; see cardiac glycoside toxidrome
» treatment of overdose includes: gastric lavage and emesis; applications of warm towels may relieve spastic colon (Duke, p. 227; Hardin and Arena)
» violently acrid poison; fresh roots can cause blistering (von Oettingen, pp. 372-373); handling fresh plant may produce contact dermatitis (Muenscher, p. 9)
» cardiac glycoside toxidrome: orogastric mucosa irritant due to protoanemonin, possibly augmented by saponins. Initial signs include numbing or prickling sensation of the tongue, a burning of the esophageal and gastric mucosa, and a sense of suffocation. This is followed by nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, severe thirst and abdominal cramps. Gastrointestinal irritation spreads down the rectum; diaphoresis, mydriasis, vertigo, delirium, and then convulsions occur. Digitalis-related EKG changes may be seen (Felter and Lloyd, p. 983; Phillips, p. 12).
» auditory and visual disturbances can also occur, including tinnitus, mydriasis and photophobia (von Oettingen, pp. 372-373)
constituents: cardiac glycosides
footnotes
Duke, J.A. 1985. C.R.C. Handbook of Medicinal Herbs. Boca Raton, FL: The C.R.C. Press.
Felter, H. W., and Lloyd, J. U. 1983. King's American Dispensatory, Vols. I and II. Portland, OR: Eclectic Medical Publications.
Hardin, J. W.; and Arena, J.M. 1974. Human Poisoning from Native Cultivated Plants, 2nd ed. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.
Muenscher, W.C. 1951. Poisonous Plants of the United States. New York: The MacMillan Company.
Phillips, C.D. 1879. Materia Medica and Therapeutics: Vegetable Kingdom. New York: William Wood and Company.
von Oettingen, W.F. 1958. Poisoning: A Guide to Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders and Company.