Maternal-fetal lead poisoning from a 15-year-old bullet.
Blood lead was mildly elevated (31 microg/dl, where 25 microg/dl is the upper limit of the normal range) in a woman with lumbar bullet fragments who was evaluated for anemia in the 23rd week of pregnancy. She required Cesarean section at term for pre-eclampsia and fetal distress. The infant had multiple congenital abnormalities. Postpartum maternal blood lead level was 75-85 microg/dl. The infant's blood lead level was also elevated. Chelation lowered the infant's blood lead level, but not the mother's. Surgical debulking of the lumbar lead deposits was followed by a fall in blood lead level from 65 to 52 microg/dl. This case demonstrates a remarkable gestational rise in maternal blood lead level. The infant's congenital abnormalities could be causally related to lead.
Raymond
L W
LW
Carolina Poison Center, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA.
Ford
M D
MD
Porter
W G
WG
Saxe
J S
JS
Ullrich
C G
CG
D000014:Abnormalities, Drug-Induced / Q000209:etiology*; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus / Q000187:drug effects; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007855:Lead Poisoning / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications* / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000097:blood; D014948:Wounds, Gunshot / Q000150:complications*