Traditional camphor misuse: a forgotten danger to children (about 2 cases)

• Published in: The Pan African medical journal 2019, Vol.32, p.89-89
• Main Authors: Nchinech, Naoual, Elgharbi, Afaf, Aglili, Fatima Zahra, Kriouile, Yamna, Cherrah, Yahia, Mdaghri, Asmaa Aaloui, Serragui, Samira
• Format: Report
• Language: fre
• ISSN: 1937-8688
• DOI: 10.11604/pamj.2019.32.89.17943

In our country, the use of traditional medicinal recipes and artisan cosmetic products is very frequent due to the high rate of illiteracy, low purchasing power and of the large number of herbalists. Camphor is a low-cost product, easily accessible and omnipresent in almost every home, making it potentially toxic in case of misuse, in particular among children. We here report two cases of intoxication induced by beauty recipe made with powdered camphor. Patients' medical history gave informations about poisoning in 2 children caused by synthetic powder made with camphor imported from China. Patient 1: little girl aged 2 months, with no previous medical history, admitted to the Emergency Department due to constant crying and refusal to eat. Clinical examination showed no abnormalities. Standard laboratory tests were normal. Neurological, digestive and cutaneous monitoring were performed. Patient 2: girl aged 6 years admitted with atonic seizure associated with syncope and foaming followed by abdominal pain and vomiting after ingesting milk. The evolution was favorable 48 hours after symptom management. Mothers reported two neighbors had received a traditional hair care recipe by a third neighbor. After that they had mixed powdered camphor with olive oil, then they had applied it to the hair of their children for one hour, thus causing the occurrence of these symptoms.