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Abstract
Mercurial compounds are used as antifungal agents in the pulp and paper industry, and subsequent tests of paper samples for mercury content revealed the following data: a Kleenex box contained 83 ppb, a cigarette package 108 ppb, and the pages of a paperback book 341 ppb (parts per billion are equivalent to micrograms per kilogram of body weight). Laboratory investigations repeated several weeks later revealed a hemoglobin level of 13.2 g per 100 ml, a mean corpuscular volume of 78 μm3 , a mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration of 32 per cent, a serum iron level of 71 μg per 100 ml, and a total iron-binding capacity of 356 μg per 100 ml. Several months later, hair analysis detected normal mercury values in the most proximal (and thus newest) 3 cm of hair growth, whereas the distal hair-follicle segments still had elevated levels.