Szechwan Purpura

Numbness, headache, and diaphoresis have been associated with consumption of restaurant Chinese foods^{1 2 3 4} and have been thought to be due to the high content of monosodium glutamate in these foods⁵; the term“Chinese-restaurant syndrome” has been coined to denote this imprecisely defined entity.⁴ However, other Oriental foods, such as ginseng, have been touted as tonics, promoting potency, fertility, libido, or longevity. One such tonic food was recently observed to produce transient inhibition of platelet aggregation and a mild hemorrhagic diathesis. Case Report A 32-year-old man reported that his platelets failed to aggregate or release serotonin on exposure to 16.