This article is reprinted from: Guangming.com
“Thank you for saving my child!” Recently, at the door of the Poisoning Medical Department of the Hunan Provincial Occupational Disease Prevention and Control Hospital, a couple held their hands tightly. Chief Physician Lai Yan’s hands were red, and she excitedly expressed her gratitude.
The couple is an ordinary working family in Changsha. The child, Xiao Zhe (pseudonym), is 22 years old this year. He is introverted and does not like to communicate with others. One morning in mid-July this year, due to a momentary depression, Xiaozhe took various drugs indiscriminately, and 10g of barium chloride crystals was added to alcoholic beverages 10 minutes later.
Subsequently, Xiao Zhe developed symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal distension, diarrhea, general weakness, poor spirit, and acupuncture-like numbness on his face and lips. At about 11:00 in the morning, the classmates discovered that something was wrong with Xiaozhe, so they rushed him to the emergency department of a nearby hospital for treatment. The examination found that Xiaozhe’s limb muscle strength was grade 0 at that time (the muscles were completely inactive), and the serum potassium was only 1.79mmol/L (normally 3.5-5.5mmol/L), which was severe hypokalemia. Symptomatic treatment such as blood purification. Considering the complexity of the poison Xiaozhe swallowed, he was referred to the Department of Poisoning Medicine of the Provincial Vocational Defense Hospital for further treatment.
“Barium chloride is a white crystalline powder, easily soluble in water and absorbed orally The resulting barium ions can be rapidly distributed to the muscles and bones within 24 hours.” Lai Yan introduced that barium ions are a very strong muscle poison, which will first have a strong stimulating and excitatory effect on various muscle tissues, and then turn into inhibition. Even paralysis can lead to progressive muscle paralysis, arrhythmia, conduction block, etc., and can also cause hypokalemia, aggravating the paralysis of respiratory muscles and myocardium.
After Xiaozhe was transferred to the Department of Poisoning Medicine, the medical team promptly assessed and made accurate judgments, and immediately gave catharsis, blood purification, potassium supplementation, detoxification, and oxygen scavenging Ji and other series of diagnosis and treatment measures, Xiaozhe’s blood barium decreased from 206.2ug/L at the time of admission to 16.3ug/L; urine barium decreased from 752.4ug/L to 133ug/L, and finally Xiaozhe was taken back from the hand of death. This not only won the thanks and praise of Xiaozhe and his parents, but also reflected the “fast, accurate and stable” of the Department of Poisoning Medicine of the Vocational Defense Hospital in treating patients with acute and critical poisoning diseases – rapid poison screening, accurate poisoning diagnosis, and medical treatment. Provide timely treatment and make every effort to ensure the safety and health of the people.
“Thank you, Director Lai, you gave me a new life!” Xiaozhe, who was reborn, truly understood the preciousness and fragility of life, and better understood the difficulties of his parents At the same time, I also thank the doctors and nurses for taking care of the seriously ill him for several days, allowing him to save his life.
Lai Yan pointed out, “Barium chloride poisoning may not be of great concern, but the fatality rate is very high!” Barium chloride is often used in industrial and chemical fields. Important and dangerous chemical industry raw materials, the general route of entry is inhalation or ingestion. If an adult takes 0.2-0.5mg of barium chloride, it will be poisoned, and 0.8-0.9mg will cause death.
What should I do if I encounter barium chloride poisoning? Lai Yan made suggestions for different situations. In case of oral poisoning, you should take foods that can protect the gastric mucosa, such as milk and raw egg white, as soon as possible, and go to the hospital immediately. In the event of inhalation poisoning, the patient should be kept away from the smoke and dust environment of high concentrations of barium compounds, the exposed parts should be cleaned, and the patient should be inhaled with fully humidified oxygen, and immediately go to the hospital for medical treatment.
Lai Yan introduced that the incubation period of acute barium chloride poisoning is mostly within a few hours. With the acceleration of industrialization and the sharp increase in the types of chemicals, in recent years, the number of critically ill poisoned patients admitted to vocational defense hospitals has shown an upward trend. She suggested that citizens should improve their awareness of prevention and avoid exposure to toxic substances. If they accidentally swallow it, seek medical attention as soon as possible.