Two drops of mercury...

[entropy]

Holy crap.

[UNK]

I woked for 20 years in a facility that used raw lead as well as mercury among many other chemicals and radiation. Everyone hired had a baseline test. That was interesting because new hires had levels higher than mine. We had one guy who had to be taken out of his area every time we had a rebuild because his lead levels would get so high. Ive worked around it constantly and never tested high.
A good idea would to do a baseline and find out where you are.
Has anyone here with a baseline ever subsuquently tested high?

[BN]

I realize this is a different kind of mercury, but as kids, someone would drop and break a mercury thermometer and we would rush to coat coins in it and carry them around in our pockets. It made them nice and shiny.

[Bio]

I realize this is a different kind of mercury, but as kids, someone would drop and break a mercury thermometer and we would rush to coat coins in it and carry them around in our pockets. It made them nice and shiny.

Yeah. Way back people would actually drink the stuff. It's definitely not good for you, but in metallic form more of it passes through you compared to the organic form, so you're not killing yourself as quickly. The phrase "mad as a hatter" and the character of The Mad Hatter were based on reality. They would use mercury in the hat making process (I think to treat felt somehow, but I'm not sure), and over time, it would soak in enough to cause neurological effects, because of course the task was performed bare handed.

[Paul D]

For every one patient who had something exotic, I've had 999 who insist that they have something exotic but the overwhelming evidence shows that they are crazy. I still look for horses first and not zebras. Great case presentation though.

[the Schwartz]

While dimethyl mercury is pretty nasty stuff, heavier organo-metallic compounds are always bad news.

The worst of the lot is dimethyl cadmium (in which cadmium replaces mercury in the twin dimethyl molecular structure and Hg(CH₃)₂ becomes Cd(CH₃)₂) as it fumes at room temperature producing nearly undetectable vapors that are every bit as deadly as those produced by dimethyl mercury which, by the way, also fumes at room temperature. The above referenced highly-referenced 1997 death of Karen Wetterhahn, occurred when droplets of dimethyl mercury permeated one of her latex gloves. Truly a shame.

[Jim Watson]

We have a chlor-alkali plant here which used to have mercury cells for electrolysis of salt water into Chlorine and Sodium hydroxide. Seepage into the river and gradual methylation of the lost mercury called for warnings not to eat river fish, especially catfish.

They closed the chlor-alkali unit but kept making potassium hydroxide by the same electrolytic process on potassium chloride solution. Must have cells without mercury or mercury containment.

[Dr_Thanatos]

For every one patient who had something exotic, I've had 999 who insist that they have something exotic but the overwhelming evidence shows that they are crazy. I still look for horses first and not zebras. Great case presentation though.

Common things present uncommonly more often than uncommon things.

Unless you are studying for boards. Then it is ignore horse, consider zebra, rule out unicorn.

[Cory]

While dimethyl mercury is pretty nasty stuff, heavier organo-metallic compounds are always bad news.

The worst of the lot is dimethyl cadmium (in which cadmium replaces mercury in the twin dimethyl molecular structure and Hg(CH₃)₂ becomes Cd(CH₃)₂) as it fumes at room temperature producing nearly undetectable vapors that are every bit as deadly as those produced by dimethyl mercury which, by the way, also fumes at room temperature. The above referenced highly-referenced 1997 death of Karen Wetterhahn, occurred when droplets of dimethyl mercury permeated one of her latex gloves. Truly a shame.

I think it was dimethyl cadmium was used in a paint manufacturing place that my brother, and uncle worked for a bit. I think it was used to make some glow in the dark metallic paint or something.

My brother eventually got assigned to clean the containers that had the stuff after they were empty. They took some precautions but once didn't have the correct ppe. My brother left the job rather than clean without the proper safety equipment. He has never regretted the choice to my knowledge.

[the Schwartz]

I think it was dimethyl cadmium was used in a paint manufacturing place that my brother, and uncle worked for a bit. I think it was used to make some glow in the dark metallic paint or something.

My brother eventually got assigned to clean the containers that had the stuff after they were empty. They took some precautions but once didn't have the correct ppe. My brother left the job rather than clean without the proper safety equipment. He has never regretted the choice to my knowledge.

Most likely, what your brother would have been exposed to were the common pigmentary cadmium compounds, cadmium sulpho-selenide and cadmium zinc sulphide, that range from deep red to bright yellow. While not organo-metallics, they are nasty especially as finely divided particulates and your brother was exceptionally wise to walk off the job since his employer didn't supply the correct PPEs.