Experts Puzzle Over Cause of Boys’ Deaths

Amid speculation that two El Segundo boys may have died from eating oleander leaves or flowers, experts said Friday that fatal poisoning from such plants is extremely rare.

Fewer than half a dozen deaths from oleander poisoning have been reported nationwide in the last 30 years, and almost all of those were from people trying to concoct some medicinal mixture using extract from the plant, according to Dr. Richard Clark, a medical toxicologist who is executive director of the California Poison Control Center.

Preliminary reports from autopsies performed Friday on the bodies of Peter and Alexander Wiltsey, ages 3 and 2, did not find the causes of death, and officials said they will perform toxicological tests soon.

Clark sought to calm any public fears about the plants in the wake of the deaths.

“I’ve got a 1 1/2-year-old and a 4 1/2-year-old, and I have no qualms about letting my children play around [oleanders],” he said.

“The oleander could kill you, but you would almost have to be trying to commit suicide for it to cause death,” he added. However, Clark suggested that some other medical problem could have been aggravated by the plants. He also raised the possibility that the boys may have eaten something else or gotten dehydrated.

The preliminary autopsy report Friday revealed no signs of any physical injuries, said Scott Carrier, spokesman for the Los Angeles County coroner’s office. He said a toxicology study will be done in the next week to 10 days.

“We need to do additional studies to determine if the children ate oleander plants,” he said. “There were no external signs of injury, and no foul play is suspected.”

Los Angeles County sheriff’s investigators have also said they do not suspect foul play. The boys were found dead Thursday in their home on McCarthy Court.

Their parents, Tom and Shirley Wiltsey, who adopted the boys from a Russian orphanage a year ago, told detectives the boys had eaten some plants Monday.

Shirley Wiltsey told investigators she found plant material in their mouths. After they began vomiting Monday night, their pediatrician advised the parents to watch them closely. Over the next two days they were lethargic and nauseated but appeared to be improving.

Although there are no oleander plants on the Wiltseys’ property, there is a bush two doors down. County botanist Jerry Turney said there are a number of other poisonous plants on the Wiltseys’ property, but said the oleander would be the most likely cause of a death because it is the most poisonous.

On Friday, Turney said he agreed with Clark’s view that death from accidental consumption is rare without some complicating factor. He said he has read of only one death from oleander in the last 20 years, and that was an intentional killing.

“I would agree. It’s almost impossible to die from it,” he said.

Clark said oleander poison can lead to death because it causes irregular heartbeats. But eating enough to get to that point is very difficult, especially for a child. He said the leaf is so bitter to the taste that a child would spit it out.

He said that few yard plants are lethally poisonous, and that certain woodland mushrooms, such as death caps, and water hemlock plants found along streams and rivers cause more deaths.

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Toxic Plants

Although roughly half the plants and flowers in a typical Southern California yard are poisonous to some extent, experts say they rarely cause death. Even the highly toxic oleander plant, which is suspected in the deaths of two small El Segundo boys Thursday morning, will almost never cause an accidental death. The death cap mushroom and water hemlock--both found primarily in wooded areas--have caused more deaths than any yard plant.

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Oleander

The plant has white, red or pink flowers.

All parts of this plant are toxic if ingested or touched, or if fumes from burning plant are inhaled.

Symptoms: weakness, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, fainting Symptoms may appear 2-6 hours after ingestion.

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Death cap mushroom

The cap is yellowish-green to greenish- brown and darkest at the center.

Slightly sticky, smooth cap is 2 -6 inches in diameter and has a strong odor.

Symptoms: delayed severe nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and eventual liver failure, which causes death.

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Water hemlock

It is considered the most violently toxic plant in North America and can cause death through ingestion.

The onset of symptoms is often so sudden and traumatic that treatments are not always successful.

Symptoms: salivation, abdominal pain, diarrhea, seizures and death from respiratory arrest.

First aid after exposure to these plants:

* Call the California Poison Control System at (800) 876-4766.

* If the poison control center or your doctor recommends inducing vomiting, use only syrup of ipecac. Do not put your finger in the throat to cause gagging, which can cause more injury.

* If advised to take a person to the hospital, bring the plant or a piece of it and any identifying information.

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Treatments:

1. Mouth: Remove any remaining parts of the plant or mushroom from victim’s mouth and clean out the mouth. Give a small amount of water.

2. Skin: Wash any skin exposed to the plant with soap and cool water as soon as possible.

3. Eyes: Flush with lukewarm water for 10-15 minutes. Be gentle, because vigorous or prolonged rinsing can hurt the eyes.

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Researched by LYNN MEERSMAN / Los Angeles Times

Sources: California Poison Control System, Cornell University, MykoWeb, University of Pennsylvania