Acute Hydrofluoric Acid Mass Exposure : Experience in Teaching Hospitals

Hydrofluoric Acid Exposure

A 21-year-old male was admitted to the emergency department with bleeding skin burns. He had been exposed to 70% hydrofluoric acid (HF) through his nitrile hand gloves during an etching glass procedure at work. He had painful lesions, which included bleeding skin abrasions due to seconddegree burns on the first and second fingertips on the right hand, and white spots on the left first finger, w...

Burns from exposure to anhydrous hydrofluoric acid.

Asthma following household exposure to hydrofluoric acid.

BACKGROUND Almost all reports of respiratory health effects of hydrofluoric acid are derived from industrial settings and usually involved massive and conspicuous exposures. In the present report we describe a case of adult-onset asthma immediately following use of a household rust stain remover that contained an 8-9% aqueous solution of hydrofluoric acid (HF). METHODS This is a case-report. ...

Hydrofluoric acid.

Chemical pneumonitis following household exposure to hydrofluoric acid.

A previously healthy 26-year-old woman developed hemorrhagic alveolitis and adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) following use of a hydrofluoric acid-containing household cleaning agent. Exposure was inhalational in nature. The circumstances and possible mechanism of chemical pneumonitis from low-dose inhalational exposure to hydrofluoric acid are discussed.