Toxicity psychological symptoms

Indomethacin (Indocin) is used in the treatment of acute gouty arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and osteoarthritis. It is not recommended for use as a simple analgesic or antipyretic because of its potential for toxicity. While indomethacin inhibits both COX-1 and COX-2, it is moderately selective for COX-1. It produces more CNS side effects than most of the other NSAIDs. Severe headache occurs in 25 to 50% of patients vertigo, confusion, and psychological disturbances occur with some regularity. GI symptoms also are more frequent and severe than with most other... 

The types of anxious personalities cited above develop PBDS not because of any inherent toxic effect of the BZD but because of their psychological disorder. A characteristic symptom of a PBDS is the rapid onset of discomfort whenever the patient thinks he or she will be without the BZD or that its dose is being lowered. 

Managing pediatric victims of chemical terrorism is an especially difficult challenge. In addition to the obvious physiologic and anatomic differences compared to adults (Table 61.1), there are important psychological and behavioral differences that put children at risk (Rotenberg and Newmark, 2003). Anecdotal reports have claimed that children are likely to be the first to manifest symptoms, to develop more severe manifestations, and to be hospitalized for other related illnesses. In fact, it is anticipated that children will be overrepresented among the initial index cases in a mass civilian exposure to toxic chemicals. Children have many characteristics that make them vulnerable to toxic exposures. The smaller mass of a child automatically reduces the dose of toxic agents needed to cause... 

Recovery phase After withdrawal of bismuth, the toxic symptoms usually abate rapidly, although physical and psychological weakness, depressive mood, memory impairment, intellectual deterioration, sleep disturbances, headache, and other symptoms occasionally persist for several months, and in isolated cases for more than a year. Exceptionally, psychic and intellectual capacity remain permanently impaired. 

Because the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland exhibited some of the symptoms of erethism, he is sometimes held to be a model for the afflictions suffered by workers in the hat industry whether Lewis Carrol intended such a parallel is still disputed, but the resemblances are uncanny. Even in the absence of identifiable symptoms, psychological testing has revealed what could be called nascent erethism in workers exposed to mercury vapor but showing no overt signs of toxicity. Tests of coordination and reaction time reveal differences between exposed and unexposed workers. Performance on elements of adult intelligence tests, such as the ability to repeat strings of digits, also shows differences. 

On-the-job exposures offer insight into the toxic effects of chemical mixtures. Though many health effects can be attributed to exposures to single chemicals, others cannot be accounted for by single chemical exposures and are clearly related to exposures to mixtures. This is particularly the case when at least one component of the mixture is a lipophile and at least one other component of the mixture is a hydrophile. The studies referenced in this chapter point out the need to consider mixture exposures when people present with symptoms, rather than dismiss their complaints as being of psychological origin. 

Psychological/behavioral effects were typically evident before the occurrence of physical symptoms. These effects were associated with whole blood ChE inhibitions of > 60%. There have been descriptions of the acute toxic effects in humans that follow high-dose exposure (> LDjq) to the nerve agents soman, sarin, and The... 

In its initial phase acute lead poisoning is associated with anorexia, dyspepsia, and constipation followed by diffuse paroxysmal abdominal pain. The skin is usually pale, the pulse is slow, and blood pressure may increase probably due to spasmodic contraction of smooth muscle. Lead exposure may cause encephalopathy, particularly in children. The Pb-B levels associated with acute encephalopathy onset at 4 xmol/liter with symptoms such as delirium and seizures, in severe cases associated with papilledema [7]. In children the initial symptoms may include vomiting, apathy, stupor, and ataxia. Lead encephalopathy may leave children with persistent neurological and psychological impairment. The alkyl lead species are highly toxic to the central nervous system [2]. 

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