Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research, Puducherry, India.
Adv Respir Med. 2020;88(2):157-159. doi: 10.5603/ARM.2020.0091.
Metallic mercury poisoning through intravenous injection is rare, especially as part of a suicide attempt. Diagnosis and treatment of the disease are challenging as clinical features are not specific.
A 41-year-old male presented with dyspnea, fatigue, loss of weight, and loss of appetite over two months. Routine radiological examination by chest X-ray and CT showed randomly distributed high density opacities with Hounsfield units (HU) around 500 HU all over the body. The diagnosis was then confirmed with a urinary mercury concentration of > 1000 mcg/24 h.
The patient's clinical condition was getting worse in spite of chelation therapy and hemodialysis. The patient eventually died because of respiratory failure.
Early diagnosis and appropriate treatment are critical for intravenous mercury poisoning especially because there are no specific signs or symptoms. There should be a high level of suspicion in drug abusers. Treatment should involve the combined use of chelating agents and other treatments such as hemodialysis and plasma exchange in advanced clinical settings.
静脉注射金属汞中毒较为罕见，特别是作为自杀企图的一部分。由于临床特征不具有特异性，因此诊断和治疗该疾病具有挑战性。
一名 41 岁男性因呼吸困难、疲劳、体重减轻和食欲不振持续两个月而就诊。胸部 X 射线和 CT 的常规影像学检查显示全身随机分布的高密 度混浊，亨斯菲尔德单位（HU）约为 500 HU。随后通过尿汞浓度>1000 mcg/24 h 确诊。
尽管进行了螯合治疗和血液透析，患者的临床状况仍在恶化。患者最终因呼吸衰竭而死亡。
静脉内汞中毒的早期诊断和适当治疗至关重要，因为没有特定的症状或体征。在药物滥用者中应高度怀疑。在高级临床环境中，治疗应包括联合使用螯合剂和其他治疗方法，如血液透析和血浆置换。
