Abstract

According to the Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances (1985), the lowest lethal acute oral dose of BaCl2 is 11.4 mg/kg body weight, and a dose as low as 5.8 mg/kg body weight causes flaccid paralysis, paresthesia, and muscle weakness. Approximately 2 h later, the patient became unconscious with shortness of breath, nodding, cyanosis, and profuse facial sweating. Because muscle paralysis leads to respiratory failure, emergency tracheal intubation was performed, and ventilator-assisted breathing was initiated. According to the US CDC, a suspicious dietary history and profound hypokalemia associated with generalized muscle weakness are key indicators of barium poisoning.

Details

Title
Critical care management of patients with barium poisoning: a case series
Author
Jun-Feng, Su 1 ; Dao-Ping, Le 2 ; Chun-He, Liu 3 ; Jian-Dong, Lin 1 ; Xiong-Jian, Xiao 1 

 Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian 350000, China 
 Department of Critical Care Medicine, Ningde Hospital Affiliated to Fujian Medical University, Ningde, Fujian 352000, China 
 Department of Critical Care Medicine, Gutian County Hospital of Fujian Province, Ningde, Fujian 352000, China 
Pages
724-725
Section
Clinical Observations
Publication year
2020
Publication date
Mar 2020
Publisher
Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Ovid Technologies
ISSN
03666999
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2459361232
Copyright
Copyright © 2020 The Chinese Medical Association, produced by Wolters Kluwer, Inc. under the CC-BY-NC-ND license. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0 (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.