Abstract
INTRODUCTION
Mercury is a toxic substance. Scientific experiments using mercury are still
performed in some laboratories in schools. Mercury evaporates in the room
temperature and enters the body by inhalation. Smaller children are prone to
toxic effects of mercury. We report an intoxication case with mercury marbles
brought home from a school laboratory.
CASE
A 3-year-old boy was brought to our clinic for gait disturbance, skin rash,
hoarseness, insomnia, restlessness, recurrent infections and mental decline. On
exam, his lower extremities were edematous, fingertips were hyperemic, cheeks
were erythematous, deep tendon reflexes could not be elicited, muscle tones
were slightly decreased. EMG was reported as mild sensory loss; sensory
neuropathy(?). Her thyroid functions were abnormal. The patients’ urine mercury
level was 86.8 ug/L (reference value <10 ug/L). Since all the members of the
family could have been exposed, urinary mercury levels of father, mother and
the other children (8, 12, 14 years old) were measured and the values were;
162ug/L, 44.2ug/L, 198.89 g/L, 149.7 ug/L and 220.04 ug/L respectively. But
they were all asymptomatic. All members of the family were hospitalized with a
diagnosis of chronic mercury toxication. Chelation therapy with DMPS was
started and continued for five months. The younger boy recovered neurologically
at the end of the fifth month and he was discharged proposing annual check.
RESULT
Some important sources of mercury in houses are hand-made cosmetic products,
fluorescent lamb and thermometer. People who are accidentally exposed to
mercury may admit neurology, dermatology or immunology clinics with non
specific symptoms. The children who are exposed to mercury should be examined
more carefully and all individuals in the same environment should be examined
in terms of exposure.
Keywords: Mercury, infant, chelation
therapy
References
- Meşide Gündüzöz1, Lütfiye Tutkun2, Vugar Ali Türksoy2, Murat Büyükşekerci1, Servet Birgin İritaş3, Sinan Karacabey2, Ömer Hınç Yılmaz4 1ankara occupational diseases hospital 2bozok university 3council of forensic medicine ankara 4yıldırım beyazıt university
Abstract
References
- Meşide Gündüzöz1, Lütfiye Tutkun2, Vugar Ali Türksoy2, Murat Büyükşekerci1, Servet Birgin İritaş3, Sinan Karacabey2, Ömer Hınç Yılmaz4 1ankara occupational diseases hospital 2bozok university 3council of forensic medicine ankara 4yıldırım beyazıt university
Details
| Journal Section | Articles |
|---|---|
| Authors | |
| Publication Date | November 1, 2017 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2017 Volume 2, Issue 1(4) |