Metals in Medical Treatment and Poisoning - Term Paper Example

Your Your Full Metals in Medical Treatment and Poisoning Metals where formerly considered to be those elements which had a metallic luster and were good conductors of heat and electricity; this is still the standard adopted by the average person, to whom metals are not merely elements such as iron, copper, or gold but also the great class of alloys including such materials as steel, brass, bronze, pewter, or cast iron. Interestingly, metals are also come in different forms and are not only used for industrial purposes but also in science specifically in the area of medical treatment. Metals are usually perceived to have positive effects to the human body, but metals are also very dangerous as they are poisonous when ingested in the body through breathing and oral intake. However, dangerous metals cans be beneficial to humans. It is also through metals that science was able to produce treatments to the various diseases that plague both children and adults. Corrosives and metals and their salts are the two kinds of inorganic poisons. Corrosives are poisons that inflame ad destroy tissues. Their local action is the prominent clinical feature, and their general action from absorption is secondary. The corrosives include mineral acids, Your Last Name 2 sulphuric, nitric, and hydrochloric; such powerful organic acids as oxalic, acetic, and carbolic; the alkaline corrosives; ammonia gas, and the halogens. Their action on tissue is to extract water, to coagulate proteins, ad to change hemoglobin into acid hematin. In a concentrated state, corrosives destroy the mucous membrane of the stomach, and they may break through the stomach or the esophagus to attack and destroy surrounding tissues and blood vessels. In such cases, death from shock ensues in a few hours. Of mineral acids, sulphuric has the most extreme action, and it is never taken internally except in cases of suicide. Oxalic acid is sometimes taken internally by being mistaken as Epsom salts. Symptoms of poisoning are difficulty in swallowing, pain in the epigastrium, thirst, and vomiting, followed by coma, collapse, and death which may follow within a few hours or after several days. The antidote is chalk and magnesia. Phenol or carbolic acid is in the form of crystals slightly soluble in water. It is extremely poisonous. Lysol is like phenol in its effects. Alkaline corrosives are a group of strong inorganic bases, such as hydroxides of sodium and potassium, lye, quicklime and ammonia water. In the body they invade cells and form alkaline albuminates. Even in dilute form they cause severe inflammation, converting the stomach mucous membrane into a moist, swollen layer. The most important of the metal poisons are phosphorous, arsenic, antimony, bismuth, mercury, radioactive substances, gold, tin, copper, and manganese. Among the chief inorganic salts are alum, magnesium sulphate, potassium chromate and borax (Taylor, p. 135) Your Last Name 3 Accumulation of heavy metals in the soft tissues of the human body is called heavy metal poisoning. Heavy metals are not the usual metals perceived by ordinary people, but they are chemical elements characterized as having a particular density measurement. Examples of these heavy metals are mercury, arsenic and cadmium. Others like copper, zinc, iron, chromium, and manganese are required by the human body for various physiological processes; but these same metals when present in large quantities become toxic. Metals when processed produce what is called as the mineral content to have been found in the human body. There are at least 14, or the 21 mineral elements, which have been recognized as essential (Taylor, p. 122). These include calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sulfur, sodium, chlorine, magnesium, iron, manganese, copper, iodine, cobalt, fluorine, and zinc. The remaining elements have been found in either very minute quantities or traces and include silicon, boron, arsenic, strontium, aluminum, bromine, and nickel. Whether these so-called trace elements are actually essential or just what role they play in human nutrition has not yet been defined. In physics, mercury is also greatly used for filling thermometers and barometers and many others. It is also used in medicine both in metallic form and in its compounds with other elements. When uncombined, mercury is used only for its bulk. As it is without medicinal effect, at one tie as much as two pounds of uncombined mercury would be given for the purpose of mechanically dislodging some obstructions in the intestines. Triturated with some other substance it is valuable medicinally and produces specific mercurial effects, local and Your Last Name 4 constitutional (Burrows, p. 408). Such compounds are “blue mass” (blue pill), mercury with chalk (gray powder), mercurial ointment and mercurial plaster. All mercurial compounds entering the circulation have a rather peculiar influence over nutrition. This is especially true of salts of mercury, such as mercurous chloride or calomel, mercuric chloride or corrosive sublimate, and mercurous iodide or the green iodide of mercury. In small doses, especially in syphilis, mercury has a definite toxic action on the spirochete which is the known parasite which causes syphilis. In large doses, mercury acts as a corrosive poison and tends to inflame the mucous membrane of the mouth, stomach, and intestines. Calomel and blue pill are largely used for their laxative effects (Shryock, p.363). Mercury in the various forms of powder, ointment, lotion and plaster is used to remove body-vermin, relieve itching and as a remedy in certain skin affections. Mercuric chloride, known as corrosive sublimate, is a powerful antiseptic and is taken internally in very minute doses. Like mercury, calcium is a metallic element. Although calcium does not occur free in nature, its compounds are abundant and widely distributed. It ranks fifth in abundance among the elements and third among the metals. Calcite is amongst its important minerals, fluorite, gypsum, anhydrite, apatite, and anorthite. Calcium is found in the teeth, bones, and the shells of mollusks. Calcium metabolism is the phenomenon referred to the use of the element calcium by the body in the production of energy and body growth. In the body, calcium s closely related to another element, phosphorus which is usually found as phosphate. Most of the body calcium is Your Last Name 5 contained in the bones but small amount is present in body fluids and exerts here important physiological effects, especially those relating to the nervous system. A deficiency of calcium produces great increase in muscular irritability which is sometimes manifested in convulsions. The presence of vitamin D in the body promotes absorption of calcium from the gastrointestinal tract, while a deficiency of this vitamin tends to the demineralization to the bones with resulting rickets children and osteomalacia (osteoporosis) in adults. Physicians strongly agree to have a daily intake of Milk, dairy products, and supplements are used to aid in achieving the right amount of calcium in the body. These are inactive ingredients of many drugs used for pleasure or stimulation; for instance, coffee, tea, cocoa, opium, cocoa leaves, tobacco, betel nuts, and the solanaceous drugs or the Duboisia leaves. While a few of the alkaloids are employed as pest exterminators, by far the most important use is in medicine. Some of the more common alkaloids are written below and it should be noted that the use that is indicated is not the only one. Your Last Name 6 Source: Modern Medical Guide, p. 166 Iron is also one of the many famous metals that most people use. In medicine, iron is known to be important especially in boosting blood to give more energy; and this is mainly seen in vitamins and other food supplements both in syrup and pills. Iron is known to play an important role in the formation of the skeletal tissues of the body. Like nitrogen, it is essential to the structure of every living cell. It is deemed important in the regular intake of both men and women as maintenance. In women, it is used to protect them from iron loss during menstruation. In alcoholic solution, tincture of iron, is also used as a medicine. Along with Iron, copper and cobalt are also used. Copper is essential for the best utilization of iron in the diet. However, copper is only needed in small amounts, thus, not presenting any dietary problem. Cobalt on the other hand, is found to be a part of vitamin B12 and thus plays and essential role as an antipernicious anemia factor. When iron in the body is present in large amounts it becomes a Your Last Name 7 poison called hemochromatosis, a genetic disorder which occurs when the body absorbs 3 to 4 times of the required iron intake. Such leads to organ failure. The amounts in which mineral elements exist in the human body vary widely. Calcium and phosphorous are found in much greater quantities because of the part they pay in the structure of the bones and teeth. In contrast to this, there is 100 times as much iron in the body as iodine. One might wonder how could someone get poisoned by these heavy metals? As mentioned in the previous pages, metals once undergone a process changes in state and then becomes, not just solid, but it also turns into liquid and gas. Those engaged in industrial work, agriculture, and manufacturing of medicines come in contact with heavy metals; adults who use lead-glazed pottery are in danger of lead poisoning, and children who play in areas where soil is contaminated also gets poisoned In the field of bio-medical treatment medical approach, heavy metal detoxification is viewed as one way of treating Autism Spectrum Disorder. Many health professionals and researches believe that the exposure to toxic chemicals is linked to the childrens cognitive disabilities such as low I.Q. and this also includes autism. Several researches have shown that heavy metals such as lead and mercury along, with other metals, are seen to be responsible in affective children in a negative way. Low doses of mercury result to language disabilities, attention and memory problems. In cases where children suffer from autism, studies show that the illness has a genetic tendency that make a particular group of children more susceptible to the effects of heavy metals as well as other toxins. Your Last Name 8 Apparently, heavy metals acts as a poison by damaging internal organs in a slow process which could either be painful at the onset or at the later stages of life. It enters the body through the air passage and remains in the lungs for sometime. It is also present in the blood and even in the intestines. Evidently, metals are very useful not only for industrial purposes but also for science and research particularly in the field of medicine. With the use of several processes, metals change into different forms – solid, liquid, and gas – to be used for many purposes. In the field of treatment and medicines metals are used to help people combat disease and keep them healthy. Many alkaline metals are used to treat several diseases and are made into medicines to address various illnesses. However, both physicians and other medical professionals are very cautious is administering metals as treat because too much could lead into a lot of complications, even death. Heavy metals abound in areas where manufacturing and industrial activities exists. The only issue in metal treatment and poisoning is that it is difficult for an average person to discriminate and be aware of whether one is not in danger against these toxic elements. Treatment can only be immediately administered once the type of metal has been identified; if not, a series of test should be done to reveal if the kind of poison that was taken in. It should also be noted that every metal that poisoned the body also has a particular cure which could also be another type of metal. Bibliography Clara May Taylor. Nutrition of Man. Tennessee: South Publishing Association, 1963. Harold Shryock, M.D. Modern Medical Guide. California: Press Publishing Association, 1978. William Burrows. Textbook of Microbiology. Philadelphia, 1954. Read More