Case Report
The usefulness of chelation therapy for the remission of symptoms caused by previous treatment with mercury-containing pharmaceuticals: a case report
-
* Corresponding author: Maria E Ferrero mariaelena.ferrero@unimi.it
Dipartimento di Morfologia umana e Scienze Biomediche-Città Studi, Università di Milano, Via Mangiagalli, 31, 20133 Milan, Italy
Cases Journal 2009, 2:199 doi:10.1186/1757-1626-2-199
Published: 18 November 2009Abstract
Introduction
A great deal of data regarding the toxicology of mercury has been recently reported. Although the most common human exposures to mercury are currently mercury vapour from amalgam tooth fillings, methylmercury from seafood and ethylmercury as a preservative in vaccines, in the past mercury compounds have been used in the treatment of syphilis.
Case presentation
Mercury intoxication was found in a 67 year-old Italian man affected by neurological symptoms of apparently unknown origin. The patient developed syphilis forty years ago and then underwent therapy with mercurials to treat his chronic bacterial infection. We treated the patient with disodium edetate chelation therapy.
Six months after the beginning of the therapy, the patient's neurological symptoms began to decrease, and were completely cured after two years of therapy.
Conclusion
This case supports the use of chelation therapy with disodium edetate to remove damages caused by mercury intoxication.