Vitamin A toxicity secondary to excessive intake of yellow-green vegetables, liver and laver

We report a case of sudden onset of vitamin A poisoning. A 20-year-old Japa nese woman had been eating pumpkin and only a very limited amount of other foods on a daily basis for 2 years. She was overly concerned about weight r eduction. Aurantiasis cutis and abnormal liver function tests were noted by her family doctor in 1995 when she was 18 years old. At that time, she sto pped eating pumpkin, However, she secretly continued an excessive intake of other betacarotene-rich vegetables, liver and laver for about 2 years. Two and one-half years after being seen by her family physician, she experienc ed sudden onset of lowgrade fever, limb edema, cheilitis, dry skin, and hea dache, These symptoms worsened daily, A liver needle biopsy was performed, and it showed a normal portal tract along with fat-laden Ito cells in the s pace of Disse. A final diagnosis of vitamin A poisoning and hepatic injury secondary to an eating disorder was made. Her symptoms and serum beta-carot ene levels returned to normal with successful adjustment of her diet.