Arsenic: homicidal intoxication.

Arsenic-induced deaths have been known to occur from accidental poisoning, as a result of medical therapy, and from intentional poisonings in homicide and suicide. Twenty-eight arsenic deaths in North Carolina from 1972 to 1982 included 14 homicides and seven suicides. In addition, 56 hospitalized victims of arsenic poisoning were identified at Duke Medical Center from 1970 to 1980. We present four case histories of arsenic poisoning in North Carolina and discuss the clinical manifestations.