A non-fatal case of Nerium oleander (common oleander) self-poisoning i
n a 45-year-old female is presented. Initial symptoms were-nausea and
vomiting, abdominal pain, phosphenes, cardiovascular shock and sinus b
radycardia, Blood and urine were assayed for oleandrin, the major card
iac glycoside of N. oleander, using a highly specific HPLC/MS procedur
e. The blood concentration of oleandrin at admission was 1.1 ng/ml. Th
is is the first report of an oleander intoxication ascertained by the
mass spectrometric identification of oleandrin in blood. HPLC/MS appea
rs to be the method of choice for the forensic-toxicological investiga
tion of poisonings by cardiac glycosides.