10/05/2020
Mercury Poisoning From Skin Cream:
The 47-year-old Mexican American woman sought outpatient medical care last July after developing dysesthesias and upper extremity weakness. She was hospitalized 2 weeks later with slurred speech, blurry vision, and an unsteady gait. In the hospital, she developed agitated delirium. Testing 2 weeks into her hospital stay revealed extraordinarily high mercury levels of 2620 μg/L in blood samples and 110 μg/L in urine. Upper limits of [mercury](https://www.cdc.gov/exposurereport/pdf/FourthReport_UpdatedTables_Volume1_Jan2019-508.pdf) in the US Mexican American population from 2015 to 2016 were 1.81 μg/L in blood and 0.90 μg/L in urine. At the California Poison Control System’s recommendation, chelation therapy was initiated.
[https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/2760748?guestAccessKey=8a77a044-c9f3-4822-85d8-c8d6f10c1da7&utm_source=fbpage&utm_medium=social_jamaderm&utm_term=3298538558&utm_campaign=partnership&linkId=87269036&fbclid=IwAR3XrBOlbpsA9rTGnvaFzRhbHU8mwIpoV7hiez6EyjX3OfZhHmrpH2Q2F3s](https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/2760748?guestAccessKey=8a77a044-c9f3-4822-85d8-c8d6f10c1da7&utm_source=fbpage&utm_medium=social_jamaderm&utm_term=3298538558&utm_campaign=partnership&linkId=87269036&fbclid=IwAR3XrBOlbpsA9rTGnvaFzRhbHU8mwIpoV7hiez6EyjX3OfZhHmrpH2Q2F3s)
Using a mercury-tainted skin-lightening cream obtained in Mexico left a California woman unable to speak or care for herself, according to a CDC report.
