Talk:Toxicodendron diversilobum

Hyphenated name
See Talk:Toxicodendron for my proposal to remove hyphenation. Elf | Talk 16:45, 13 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * It's hypenated to show clearly that it isn't a species of Quercus (Fagaceae), which is otherwise implied by the name 'oak'. Compare e.g. Douglas-fir, Osage-orange, etc. - MPF 10:37, 18 Apr 2005 (UTC)

See response in Talk:Toxicodendron. Elf | Talk 15:26, 18 Apr 2005 (UTC)

"The hyphenated form 'Poison-oak' is used, rather than 'Poison Oak' to clearly indicate that it is not a variety of oak, just as 'Poison-ivy' is not a variety of ivy." Not according to any reputable dictionary. LOL, always makes my day to see the Wikipedia control freaks try and use the venue as a means to change usage -- simply by insisting the wrong way is right and hoping people take their word for it. Sadly, so many people these days do just that. 97.127.56.97 (talk) 15:18, 15 June 2010 (UTC)

Deleted poison oak link
Why the deletion of the Poison oak page link to the "arborist" website?

The photos are better in quality - McGraw Hill even requested to use one in a medical book.

The deleted link was http://www.mdvaden.com/poison_oak.shtml

One good value in the page, is the added image resource. It would serve as a better image reference, at least until the Wikipedia page gains images that are clear enough for positive ID.

The page should also contain a couple of winter pics within the next two weeks. One at a distance to show form, and another close-up to show buds and branching (alternating versus opposing) pattern.

Wasn't sure how to add a comment in this discussion area, so added this in an edit: still viewable.

Mdvaden 07:59, 25 January 2007 (UTC)


 * If you want these images included in Wikipedia, upload higher resolution copies under some sort of public domain license to Wikipedia. Whether or not these images "are better in quality" is moot as long as they are tiny thumbnails.  You can't even tell what the trunk is in that image, from anything in the article or caption, as it simply looks like the vegetation-covered vine of any woody plant in the world, the red leaves on the bottom are shot at an odd angle so that you can't see the distinctive mitten thumbs, and we alredy have a small image of the leaves.  The site contains what appears to be original research, or is not tied to verifiable scientific resources.  All of these reasons together require that the site be deleted from Wikipedia.  Please see WP:NOR for starters.  We also can't include the link because of what the site might contain in the future.  Wikipedia links must be to stable, verifiable, and credible sites.  KP Botany 19:39, 26 January 2007 (UTC)


 * PS To add a new discussion click on the '+' tab above and it will give you a screen where you can insert a title and text. KP Botany 19:40, 26 January 2007 (UTC)

How do we ascertain what an external site "might" have later?
Duplicated post. But, I found the plus symbol.

Mdvaden 03:27, 31 January 2007 (UTC)

Ascertaining what an external site "might" have later?
Looking at the Dematology Acadamy site for example - which is not a school - what factors determine that it won't change?

The second external link after it, is quite interesting - definitely unique.

There are two aspects to the subject of credibility, at least with poison oak. There is a medical side, and a horticultural side. For example, many medical professionals are trained about chemical and health issues. Their plant identification and horticulture training may not be existent or certified.

On the Academy link is "Poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac grow almost everywhere in the United States".

Factually, that's not credible. Poison oak rarely grows above 5000 feet elevation, and also does not grow at many places under 5000 feet elevation. So it does not grow "almost everywhere" in the United States.

The same page states that "Western poison oak needs a great deal of water".

That is incorrect. In Washington, it grows on the rock face of Beacon Rock in the Columbia River Gorge: including the west face exposed to the sunset. There is hardly any soil on that side of the monolith. In southern Oregon, it grows by Medford on the rocky dry slopes of Table Rock. Medford is a dry climate with not much more than 19 inches of rain per year.

When we think about it, if they were right about the "great deal of water", that would eliminate even more of the "everywhere" in the United States, that the site says the plant grows. It has content that undermines other content.

Most information pertaining to the health problems appears right. The difficulty pertains to the non-medical part - the plant related information.

How do you feel about those statements?

The questionable information is associated with subject matter that the sources appear to lack credentials for.

Mdvaden 03:29, 31 January 2007 (UTC)


 * I'm not really sure what you are saying here. The AAD is a professional organization whose members deal extensively with the treatment of rashes from this plant.  Dermatologists are the primary researchers in rashes from these plants, also.  So, what precisely are you disagreeing with, apparently you say that Poison oak is rare, it grows commonly neither above nor below 5000'?  What is your source for this?   You say poison oak grows on thin soils, then challenge it.  I'm just not following you?  KP Botany 04:08, 31 January 2007 (UTC)


 * I think what Mdvaden is getting at here is that there are some external links that contain excellent and credible information on one area of a subject, these same links contain misinformation on other areas of the subject. For example, the webpage in question (http://www.aad.org/public/Publications/pamphlets/Poison_IvyOakSumac.htm) has lots of info on dermatology issues related to three taxa, information which is likely reliable considering the site is the American Academy of Dermatology. Some of the botanical and habitat info on this same site, however, is often somewhat inaccurate (or vague) as Mdvaden pointed out. I think the issue here is not whether or not this particular link should be listed, but how best to deal with external links that have high credibility for some info but low credibility for other information. Maybe this could be indicated when the link is made (Ex: Dermatology information from the AAD; Botanical overview page, USDA; etc.).--NoahElhardt 06:30, 31 January 2007 (UTC)


 * You are getting close! I'm even saying that the dermatologist site compromised it's credibility with the innacurate information about poison oak. Also, the second link, under it, by what appears to be a single physician, seems much more thorough. One idea, may be to delete the association's link, until they correct their page, and place the University of California's poison oak page there instead. That way, there will be one remaining medical resource - which is 10 times more thorough - plus one respected horticulture resource.Mdvaden 07:05, 31 January 2007 (UTC)


 * You may have been there, but check this other link authored by the professor at PESG page by Assistant Professor. That's the other external link. Look at the range map for WESTERN poison oak. That's right on the money and in agreement with the U. of C.. It leaves me curious about how the dermatologist association came up with a diverse conclusion? There is a difference between the two websites. Anyone else noticed? The more complete page is on a site that's designed for education. It's a CEU and education site. The acadamy site promotes itself, and steers people to it's members. That's part of the reason why the information is written differently.Mdvaden 07:42, 31 January 2007 (UTC)


 * I don't have time to review the dermatologists' site. However, if both you and Noah see that the information is inaccurate, please just delete the link, for now.  Thanks.  I will try to remember to review it later, but doubt I'll have the time.  KP Botany 00:55, 1 February 2007 (UTC)

The other side of the credibility coin
After the last post about credibility and innacurate information, consider this written statment: "Poison oak can survive under a wide range of temperatures, elevations, soil types, moisture conditions, and light intensities. However, it is most commonly found on hillsides with shallow soils. The flowers of poison oak are usually pollinated by insects."

Thats from the University of California: AGRICULTURE AND NATURAL RESOURCES - Integrated Pest Management Note the chasm between the cultural conditons it lists, and what the Dematology Academy page lists. The University of California is one of the sources I relied on, because it is credible and accurate - for the horticultural / botanical information. I haven't scrutinized the non-botanical statements. It may be that words like "serum" are figurative rather than literal pertaining to the ooze from skin.

U. of C. also lists its resource list at the bottom.

One thing that presents itself here, is that its okay for someone to expand their page outside their expertise, like a doctor including information about plants and plant ID. Or like a university's agriculture department including information about health and medical information. But if they do that, they are 100% obligated to keep their pages impeccably accurate. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Mdvaden (talk • contribs) 03:43, 31 January 2007 (UTC).

Mdvaden 07:03, 31 January 2007 (UTC)

Yes, correct. Try to remember the four tildas, or use the scrawl above--I still forget it on occassion, though. KP Botany 00:58, 1 February 2007 (UTC)

Obsolete link
The link to the New England Journal of Medicine article about the interaction between poison-oak and mango now results in an error page rather than an article. Is there a stable source for this article, or will the magazine only provide it to subscribers? Sbeitzel 17:53, 8 May 2007 (UTC)

The whole statement seems rather misleading. I found a correct link to the article and it refers to a single case where a patient who was sensitized to poison oak received a rash after handling a mango. This is probably a result of the mango peel, which contains very small amounts of urushiol, the same substance found in poison oak (see Mango). This doesn't mean that eating the fruit itself is likely to magnify the effects of poison oak. I'm going to go ahead and remove the statement. --203.214.34.254 18:17, 21 May 2007 (UTC)


 * Sorry you are very wrong. One person! NO. this has been studied in Israel but scientists. I am living proof as well. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15701120 SChalice  18:16, 11 January 2016 (UTC)

The Berries
They showed us a picture of the berries, but they didn't tell us what would happen if we ate the berries. Or what effect they would have on skin. Ergo: Do the have the berries have the same oils as the plant it's self? This section needs improvement! —Preceding unsigned comment added by Moonology1 (talk • contribs)

Content quality
Much of this read like a third-grade paper. I tried to remove big problems and unfounded statements (military use of urushiol). It needs more work. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.248.172.5 (talk • contribs)

quote
The quotation part appears very unprofessional. I think it should be removed Bigbadbyte (talk) 07:38, 26 May 2008 (UTC)

Hyphenation again!
None of the English dictionaries that I own use the hyphen in the name of this plant nor in that of poison ivy. The Wikipedia article on poison ivy does not use the hyphen. In googling "poison oak", none of the articles cited on the first two pages uses the hyphen. The Wikipedia article an Atlantic poison oak is inconsistent in its use of the hyphen. Even in this article the use of the hyphen is inconsistent! I can only conclude that this is the personal preference of the article's author and therefore inappropriate in an encyclopedia article. I have corrected the use of the hyphen in this article. Caeruleancentaur (talk) 16:15, 28 October 2011 (UTC)

Similar plants that cause a dermal reaction.
I was suffering greatly until I found a small blurb somewhere on Wikipedia that mentioned that Mangos should not be eaten when allergic to Poison Oak. This saved me and this information should be included here. I have since learned that unroasted cashews also contain a similar acid to poison oak. SChalice 18:13, 11 January 2016 (UTC)


 * I've added the mango rind note with two references. Per the NYT source, cashew shells also contain the toxin, but don't pose a danger because of how they are treated--either roasted or steamed. Barte (talk) 19:50, 11 January 2016 (UTC)

Most people are allergic comment
There was a revert (which I agreed needed to be reverted) that mentioned that most people are allergic to poison oak. It was not referenced or cited so it got reverted. The comment was in fact true according to the American Skin web site which may or may not be a legitimate source. :)
 * Poison Ivy, Sumac and Oak. About 85 percent of the population is allergic to poison ivy, poison sumac or poison oak, and about 10 to 15 percent are extremely allergic. This is the most common allergic reaction in the U.S., and affects as many as 50 million Americans each year.

However I see another University at Illinois comment which also suggests 85% is correct:
 * Sensitivity develops after the first direct skin contact with urushiol oil. An allergic reaction seldom occurs on the first exposure. A second encounter can produce a reaction which may be severe. About 85 percent of all people will develop an allergic reaction when adequately exposed to poison ivy. This sensitivity varies from person to person. People who reach adulthood without becoming sensitive have only a 50 percent chance of developing an allergy to poison ivy. However, only about 15 percent of people seem to be resistant.

So I'm curious about whether a sentence should be added to the extant article covering the percentage of expected populace which are immune from the effects of contact and which are not. Damotclese (talk) 16:00, 18 April 2016 (UTC)


 * I was the one who reverted it due to lack of a source. But the 85% figure seems solid--I think we should add it with one or more sources. Barte (talk) 22:15, 18 April 2016 (UTC)
 * Yeah, it seems like a good idea to have it, and yeah, without source it's not good. :) Also there are specific genetic phenotypical humans who appear to have a racism immunity. Damotclese (talk) 16:10, 19 April 2016 (UTC)
 * Looking this over, the article already says Toxicodendron diversilobum leaves and twigs have a surface oil, urushiol, which causes an allergic reaction.[2] It causes contact dermatitis – an immune-mediated skin inflammation – in four-fifths of humans.[10][11] However, most, if not all, will become sensitized over time with repeated or more concentrated exposure to urushiol. Is there anything else to add? Barte (talk) 17:25, 19 April 2016 (UTC)

External links modified
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 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20070708105008/http://www.aad.org/public/Publications/pamphlets/Poison_IvyOakSumac.htm to http://www.aad.org/public/Publications/pamphlets/Poison_IvyOakSumac.htm

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