revised final - Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry ...

MERCURY 108
2. HEALTH EFFECTS
physical examination was normal. The patient complained of no gastrointestinal symptoms, and was treated
with a mild laxative and bedrest (Wright et al. 1980).
In a second and massive incidence of ingestion, a 42-year-old man who had spent much of his life (since the
age of 13) repairing instruments that contained mercury, intentionally ingested an estimated 220 mL (about
3,000 g) while repairing a sphygmomanometer (Lin and Lim 1993). Upon admission, the patient presented
with significantly elevated mercury blood levels (103 µg/L, normal