Lead intoxication associated with chewing plastic wire coating--Ohio.

Lead Intoxication — Continued In December 1991, a venous blood lead level (BLL) of 50 μg/dL was detected in a 46-year-old Ohio man during a routine pre-employment examination. He was referred to a university-based pharmacology and toxicology clinic for further evaluation; clinic physicians investigated the case. Although a repeat BLL obtained 1 month later was 51 μg/dL, he reported no exposure to known sources of lead during the interim. However, he reported numbness of his fingers and palms, tinnitus, and a possible decrease in his ability to perform basic arithmetical calculations. A comprehensive occupational and environmental history obtained at the time of the second BLL test revealed no apparent source of his lead exposure. Although he had been employed for approximately 20 years as a microwave technician during military service and while employed at a television station, he reported no history of exposure to lead from soldering or welding. He had no activities or hobbies associated with exposure to lead or lead products, no previous bullet or birdshot wounds, and he denied drinking illicitly distilled alcohol or using lead additives in his car. His residence was built in 1974 (after lead was banned from use in residential paint)*, and household water was obtained from a well. In January 1992, blood lead testing of family members revealed levels of 5 μg/dL for his wife and <5 μg/dL for his 17-year-old child. His only medication was ranitidine†, which he had used for the previous 11⁄2 years for “indigestion.” He reported occasional cigarette smoking. Although results of a neurologic examination were normal, neuropsychiatric testing on March 13 demonstrated mild memory deficits, as evidenced by abnormalities on verbal and figural memory tests. Because of these abnormalities, beginning March 13, he was treated for 19 days with dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA), an oral chelating agent, and on April 4, his BLL had decreased to 13 μg/dL. However, BLLs on May 15 and July 23 were 49 μg/dL and 56 μg/dL, respectively. June 25, 1993 / Vol. 42 / No. 24