Amongst toxic heavy metals, lead ranks as one of the most serious environmental poisons all over the world. Exposure to lead in the home and the workplace results in health hazards to many adults and children causing economic damage, which is due to the lack of awareness of the ill effects of lead. We report the case of a 22 year old man working in an unorganized lead acid battery manufacturing unit, complaining about a longer history of general body ache, lethargy, fatigue, shoulder joint pain, shaking of hands and wrist drop. Patient had blue line at gingivodental junction. Central nervous system (CNS) examination showed having grade 0 power of extensors of right wrist & fingers. Reflexes: Supinator-absent, Triceps-weak and other deep tendon reflexes-normal. Investigations carried out during the admission showed hemoglobin levels of 8.3 g/dl and blood lead level of 128.3 µg/dl. The patient was subjected to chelation therapy, which was accompanied by aggressive environmental intervention and was advised not to return to the same environmental exposure situation. After repeated course of chelation therapy he has shown the signs of improvement and is on follow up presently.
The consumption of unbranded herbal medicines as a causative factor for lead poisoning was confirmed by high lead content in the medicines. Surely, this demands public health programs to disseminate strategies to the medical personnel about the clinical implication of lead poisoning, as well as the general public for awareness and to prevent lead poisoning.
Among the heavy metals, lead still remains the major toxic pollutant of the environment. Human exposure to lead can occur through numerous pathways including air, food, dust, soil, and water. In the present study 14 lead poisoned patients with non-occupational lead exposure were evaluated. They were followed up and compared against the controls with no history of lead exposure. The patients had high blood lead levels and symptoms of weakness, dizziness, abdominal pain, generalized body ache, loss of appetite, and anxiety. Repeated course of chelation therapy helped to bring down their body burden of lead. Alternative sources for lead exposure can cause severe lead poisoning in general population. Screening and medical management of such individuals is very important to identify and eliminate sources of lead. The treatment and management requires a thorough medical evaluation and environmental intervention.
Globally, of many toxic heavy metals, lead is the most widely used for various purposes, resulting in a variety of health hazards due to environmental contamination. Lead in the workplace enters the workers through inhalation of lead-contaminated air, by ingestion, and sometimes through dermal exposure. Furthermore, exposure outside the workplace can occur from inhalation of lead-contaminated air, ingestion of lead-contaminated dust and soil, consumption of lead polluted water, lead adulterated food and lead supplemented medicine. In the present study, an evaluation of blood lead was carried out with the aid of a 3010 B lead analyser, based on the principle of anodic stripping voltametry (ASV), and environmental lead in paint, soil and dust samples by a field portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyser. This revealed a high incidence of lead toxicity in most of the lead-based industrial workers in the four facilities tested in India and high levels of lead in the environmental samples. Developed countries have complied with the global standards for regulating environmental lead poisoning in the workplace, eliminating to some degree excessive exposure to lead. A developing country, such as India, can tackle this problem by implementing national and international policies. The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations, which are of prime importance, or similar regulations, can be adapted for use in India and implemented to minimize lead exposure and to reduce the resultant health hazards.
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