Citation

Downs JC, Milling D, Nichols CA. Am. J. Forensic Med. Pathol. 1995; 16(1): 56-61.

Affiliation

Charleston County Medical Examiner's Office, South Carolina, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1995, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

7771386

Abstract

Physicians, familiar with the common usage of barium medicinally as the contrast agent barium sulfate, may consider it an innocuous or at most a minimally harmful compound. The barium cation is extremely toxic and produces characteristic gastrointestinal symptoms, periorbital and extremity paresthesia, hypertension, and progressive flaccid muscular paralysis. Profound hypokalemia also may be induced. Overdose may be rapidly fatal unless the ingestion is recognized and appropriate treatment is instituted expediently.

Language: en