Lead poisoning - associated death from Asian Indian folk remedies: Florida
A case study is presented of a 9-month-old Asian Indian boy who died in Florida of lead poisoning that resulted from ingestion of folk remedies. Postmortem examination revealed severe lead poisoning as the underlying cause of death. High concentrations of lead were found in the blood, urine, liver, and kidneys. Lead lines were seen in radiographs of the long bones. The source of lead could not be identified in the house or environment on examination. However, the parents disclosed that they had regularly given the infant folk remedies from India since he was 2 months old. The parents provided samples of three folk remedies for analysis by the Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services. All three contained lead. The highest concentration (1.6%) was in ghasard, a brown powder given once daily as a tonic. Based on recommendations by the Ad Hoc Advisory Committee on Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention, the CDC is revising the guidelines for lead screening in young children. The new guidelines recommend EP screening of all children between 9 months and 6 years of age. A child with an EP level of 35..mu..g/dL or higher should have a repeat EP test, a blood-lead test, and a hematocrit or hemoglobin test. Lead toxicity - defined as a blood-lead level of 25 ..mu..g/dL or higher, along with an EP level of 35 ..mu..g/dL or higher - requires further medical evaluation and environmental investigation to identify the source(s) of lead. These new guidelines will be distributed in the form of a CDC statement to health departments and health-care providers.
- OSTI ID:
- 5887775
- Journal Information:
- J. Appl. Math. Mech. (USSR) (Engl. Transl.); (United States), Vol. 252:22
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
INFANTS
MORTALITY
LEAD
HEALTH HAZARDS
TOXICITY
AUTOPSY
BIOLOGICAL ACCUMULATION
BLOOD
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
DIAGNOSIS
DRUGS
INGESTION
KIDNEYS
LIVER
MEDICAL SURVEILLANCE
RECOMMENDATIONS
URINE
AGE GROUPS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BIOLOGICAL WASTES
BODY
BODY FLUIDS
CHILDREN
DIAGNOSTIC TECHNIQUES
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
ELEMENTS
GLANDS
HAZARDS
INTAKE
MATERIALS
METALS
ORGANS
SURVEILLANCE
WASTES
560306* - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology- Man- (-1987)