A case of zinc phosphide poisoning with ST segment elevation ECG changes

Zinc phosphide (Rat poison) poisoning is becoming increasingly common in most parts of India. It is one of the most lethal poisons. The harmful effects of the poison have been ascribed to the release of phosphine gas which inhibits cytochrome oxidase. Aluminium phosphide, a similar toxin has been well documented to produce infarct pattern in ECG. However such changes ascribable to Zinc Phosphide have been infrequently reported in literature. We hereby report the case of young teenage male whose ECG showed ST elevation mimicking myocardial infarction pattern which resolved after appropriate management of the poisoning.