Chronic lead poisoning induced abdominal pain and anemia: a case report and review of the literature
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CASE REPORT
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Chronic lead poisoning induced abdominal pain and anemia: a case report and review of the literature Yuan Yang1†, Shujun Li2†, Hong Wang1, Morong Liu1, Biguang Tuo1, Huichao Wu1, Shili Deng1 and Xuemei Liu1*
Abstract Background: Chronic lead poisoning (CLP) is a rare cause of abdominal pain and is common in young children, in whom the incidence is higher than it is in adults. As the symptoms of CLP are nonspecific, misdiagnoses or missed diagnoses often occur, especially in sporadic cases. Case presentation: We report a 28-year-old young man who was misdiagnosed with renal colic due to sudden acute abdominal pain. After a detailed medical history and physical examination, other possible causes were excluded, CLP was finally diagnosed, and he recovered after chelation treatment. Conclusion: Abdominal pain is a very common clinical symptom in adults, which has many causes. We should be vigilant against chronic poisoning, especially CLP. Detailed diagnosis and physical examination are crucial in early diagnosis and treatment. Keywords: Chronic lead poisoning, Abdominal pain, Anemia, Differential diagnosis
Background Abdominal pain is a very common clinical symptom in adults. Many etiologies can cause abdominal pain that lacks specificity, which is easy to ignored in diagnosis or misdiagnose. Chronic lead poisoning (CLP) is a rather rare etiology of abdominal pain, and is common in young children, in whom the incidence is higher than it is in adults. Lead is the most important toxic heavy element in the environment, due to its important physico-chemical properties, it is applied widely, which has led to environmental pollution in different areas [1]. Occupational lead poisoning is still the most common chronic poisoning in China, Characteristics of obvious occupational exposure and group morbidity can help in * Correspondence: [email protected] † Yuan Yang and Shujun Li were contributed equally and share first authorship. 1 Department of Gastroenterology, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi 563003, Guizhou, Province, China Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
the diagnosis of occupational lead poisoning. However, living lead poisoning is only occasionally discovered. Here, we report an adult case of CLP caused by longterm exposure to children’s picture books, manifesting as abdominal pain and anemia, and he recovered after chelation treatment.
Case presentation A 26-year-old male patient was admitted to our hospital due to recurrent abdominal pain for 3 months and aggravated for 2 days. This kind of paroxysmal colic was around the umbilical and hypogastric region and radiated to the lower back. The local community hospital he once visited considered “kidney stones”. The patient was given regular symptomatic solutions, which included antispasmodic and analgesic treatments. His abdominal pain was not significantly relieved after treatment. For further diagnosis and treatment, he was sent to our hospital. Upon physical examination, h
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