title: Optic Neuropathy from Cobalt Toxicity in a Patient who Ingested Cattle Magnets.
abstract: Cobalt is a widely used in the industrial production of hard metals. Cobalt ingestion has been reported to cause widespread systemic toxicity, but its effects on vision have been sparsely reported. The authors report the case of a patient who ingested cattle magnets, which remained in his stomach for an unknown duration of time. These magnets largely consist of cobalt that gradually leached into his blood stream, resulting in protean systemic manifestations, which included optic atrophy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
authors.forename: Namita
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bhardwaj
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Perez
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Peden
keywords: cobalt; optic neuropathy; toxic