Infants, common poisonings

Botulism is most commonly caused by ingestion of a neurotoxin produced by Clostridium botulinum in improperly canned food. Poisoning may also occur after wound contamination with the organism. Infant botulism may occur when spores of the organism germinate and manufacture the toxin in the intestinal tract of infants. Botulinum toxin works by inhibiting ACh release at all cholinergic synapses. 

Boric acid and sodium borate have been used for many years in a variety of products as antiseptics and fungistatic agents in baby talcum powder. Boric acid powder (99%) is still used as a pesticide against ants and cockroaches. In the past, repeated and indiscriminate application of boric acid to broken or abraded skin resulted in many cases of severe poisoning. Epidemics have also occurred after boric acid was mistakenly added to infant formula or used in food preparation. Although chronic toxicity seldom occurs now, acute ingestion by children at home is common. 

An early symptom of lead poisoning is colic, warning that more serious effects may occur with continued and prolonged exposure. Colic is commonly noticed in industrial exposure cases and in lead poisoning of infants and young children. Although there is extensive documentation in the literature, data are insufficient to establish a dose-response relationship for the effect of lead on the gastrointestinal tract [73]. 

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