A teenager has died after eating the toxic wild mushrooms that he and his family collected.
The incident occurred in the commune of Hualqui in the Bío Bío region of Chile, located in the center of the country.
The 17-year-old boy passed away due to fulminant hepatic failure as a result of eating the poisonous mushrooms, local media outlet Bío Bío Chile reported.
Fulminant hepatic failure is defined as severe acute liver failure in a patient with no pre-existing liver disease.
Stock image: Mushrooms in a dark forest. Some mushrooms are poisonous to humans.Stock image: Mushrooms in a dark forest. Some mushrooms are poisonous to humans.iStockThis condition is characterized by a rapid loss of liver function that occurs over a period of days or weeks.
Acute liver failure is a medical emergency that requires prompt treatment in hospital. It can cause serious complications, including bleeding and increased pressure in the brain.
The 17-year-old high-school student, who remains unidentified, went out to collect wild mushrooms with his family in a rural area of Hualqui.
After collecting the mushrooms, the boy consumed some of the mushrooms alongside the rest of his family, with the exception of the younger brother, the mayor of Hualqui, Jorge Constanzo, told Bío Bío.
"The whole family ate [wild mushrooms]—that is, the two parents and their children," Constanzo said. "The younger son, fortunately, because he found the mushrooms tasteless, it seems, did not eat them. Otherwise, we would have had all four family members in the same situation."
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The 17-year-old began to feel bad a few hours after consuming the wild mushrooms, according to the family. He ended up being admitted to a local hospital, his aunt Bárbara Poblete said.
"The son spent the night in the ICU. In the morning they called the parents and told them that the son needed to be urgently transferred to the [Concepción] Regional Hospital because he needed a liver transplant," Poblete said. "The news was a bombshell for everyone."
The boy spent several days inside the hospital but doctors were not able to perform a liver transplant in time. Eventually, the boy succumbed to the powerful toxins in the wild mushroom and passed away.
The parents also experienced negative effects from eating the mushrooms but they were treated in a different health care facility and did not suffer life-threatening complications.
It is not clear what type of wild mushrooms the family consumed. But some edible mushrooms bear a striking resemblance to species that can be dangerous when eaten.
Following the incident, the Medical College of Chile issued a statement warning members of the public not to collect or consume any type of wild mushroom.
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