[ANON POST] Aconite Poisoning and Treatment in 1500s Italy
I’m writing an Assassin’s Creed fanfiction set in Italy in the early 1500s, and I’ve got a bit of a poisoning problem. There is a section of the story in which an assassin attacks his target with the poison blade, so aconite is injected into the victim. The problem I have is that seconds after he’s successfully injected his target, he realises he’s made a mistake and the target has to survive, no matter what. The assassin is able to get the target to a doctor within a flexible timeframe, although I do have to allow for the public aftermath of a botched assassination attempt.
All the sources I’ve found are consistent on the symptoms aconite poisoning causes, but the only recommendations for treatment I can find apply to the modern day. I can’t find anything about how it would have been treated in the 1500s or if it could be treated at all. Equally, the only cases of aconite poisoning I can find describe situations where the poison was ingested.
As far as I can tell, cardiovascular irregularities will almost certainly occur, and the victim's heart will stop in this fanfiction. From there, I have a distinctly non-medical progression in mind but up until that point, I'll need to be as true to the historical context as possible.
Essentially, what I need to know is:
• Are there any differences in symptoms or how quickly aconite can kill if it is injected rather than ingested? Incidentally, can aconite even be injected? I'm a little wary of taking the details of the AC universe at face value.
• The assassin will tell the doctor exactly what happened and the name of the poison. Based on that, what action would the doctor take? What impact, if any, would it have on the victim's condition and chances of survival?
These are some of the articles / sources I've read: (I haven't listed all of them, but these ones cover most of the information I've collected - hope that's ok)
jcdr.net/article_fulltext.asp?id=199
nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM189707151370303
open.edu/openlearn/history-the-arts/history/history-science-technology-and-medicine/history-medicine/the-italian-patient-health-care-renaissance-italy
hermionesgarden.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/signs-and-symptoms-of-monkshood.html
inchem.org/documents/pims/plant/aconitum.htm
www.mdpi.com/2072-6651/6/9/2605
theflorentine.net/articles/article-view.asp?issuetocId=3464
The search terms I've used have been along the lines of:
"aconite poisoning treatment"
"aconite poisoning symptoms"
"aconite poisoning renaissance Italy"
"poisoning treatment renaissance Italy"
"medicine renaissance Italy"
Thanks in advance to anyone who can help.
All the sources I’ve found are consistent on the symptoms aconite poisoning causes, but the only recommendations for treatment I can find apply to the modern day. I can’t find anything about how it would have been treated in the 1500s or if it could be treated at all. Equally, the only cases of aconite poisoning I can find describe situations where the poison was ingested.
As far as I can tell, cardiovascular irregularities will almost certainly occur, and the victim's heart will stop in this fanfiction. From there, I have a distinctly non-medical progression in mind but up until that point, I'll need to be as true to the historical context as possible.
Essentially, what I need to know is:
• Are there any differences in symptoms or how quickly aconite can kill if it is injected rather than ingested? Incidentally, can aconite even be injected? I'm a little wary of taking the details of the AC universe at face value.
• The assassin will tell the doctor exactly what happened and the name of the poison. Based on that, what action would the doctor take? What impact, if any, would it have on the victim's condition and chances of survival?
These are some of the articles / sources I've read: (I haven't listed all of them, but these ones cover most of the information I've collected - hope that's ok)
jcdr.net/article_fulltext.asp?id=199
nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM189707151370303
open.edu/openlearn/history-the-arts/history/history-science-technology-and-medicine/history-medicine/the-italian-patient-health-care-renaissance-italy
hermionesgarden.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/signs-and-symptoms-of-monkshood.html
inchem.org/documents/pims/plant/aconitum.htm
www.mdpi.com/2072-6651/6/9/2605
theflorentine.net/articles/article-view.asp?issuetocId=3464
The search terms I've used have been along the lines of:
"aconite poisoning treatment"
"aconite poisoning symptoms"
"aconite poisoning renaissance Italy"
"poisoning treatment renaissance Italy"
"medicine renaissance Italy"
Thanks in advance to anyone who can help.