Mercury Exposure Through Gold Extraction: Varied Signs and Symptoms of Toxicity

Abstract

A 48-year-old male called the poison control center noting his “skin is starting to peel off”. He stated ten days prior, a container fell from a shelf and spilled approximately 100 milliliters of elemental mercury used for gold extraction. Because it was felt there was a still valuable amount of gold in the mercury, he explored the silvery material for any recoverable specs of gold. Once complete, he used a vacuum to remove the mercury, and swept the remainder under a rug.