J Clin Pathol. 1976 Sep; 29(9): 788-94.

A case of veno-occlusive disease of the liver in Britain associated with herbal tea consumption.

McGee J, Patrick RS, Wood CB, Blumgart LH.

Veno-occlusive disease of the liver with clinical and pathological features similar to those of the condition occurring in the Caribbean is described in a young woman resident in Britain. The diagnosis was made from liver biopsies and hepatic venography and was confirmed at necropsy. Small amounts of pyrroliziding alkaloids were recovered from a sample of mate (Paraguay) tea, owned by the patient, to which she was addicted. It seems probable that the consumption of large amounts of this tea over a period of years was the cause of the hepatic disease.