Death from accidental poisoning of methamphetamine by leaking into alimentary tract in drug traffic: A case report

Abstract

A case of acute mathamphetamine (MA) poisoning death was occasionally found in autopsy by leaking into alimentary tract from package in drug traffic. A Korean man (39-year-old) was found dead in his apartment in Shenyang and 158 columned-shaped packages (390 g) of MA were found in his alimentary tract by autopsy, in which four packages were found in the esophagus, 118 in the stomach and 36 in the lower part of small intestine. The packages were wrapped with tinfoil and plastic film, from which one package in the stomach was empty and ruptured. Extreme pulmonary edema, congestion and hemorrhage as well as moderate edema, congestion and petechial hemorrhage in the other viscera were observed at autopsy and microscopically. Simultaneously AMP (amphatamine) in urine was tested positive by Trige DOA kit. Quantitative analysis was performed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Extremely high concentrations of MA were found in the cardiac blood (24.8 microg/mL), the urine (191 microg/mL), the liver (116 microg/mL) and the gastric contents (1045 microg/mL), and no alcohol and other conventional drugs or poisons were detected in the same samples. The poisoning dosage is 5 microg/mL in the plasma and lethal dosage is 10-40 microg/mL in the plasma according the report. This high concentrations of MA in blood indicated that the cause of death was result from acute MA poisoning due to MA leaking into stomach. Much attention must be paid in the body packer of drugs in illegal drug traf…