A Case of Severe Poisoning due to Oral Hydrofluoric Acid Ingestion that Could Survive with Timely Effective Treatments

Abstract

Hydrofluoric acid (HFA) is one of the most corrosive inorganic acids. Systemic toxicity usually occurs after ingestion or inhalation. It can lead to hypocalcemia, hypomagnesemia, hypokalaemia, hyperkalaemia, shock, metabolic acidosis, and ventricular dysrhythmias. A 13-month-old male patient was hospitalized after drinking an unknown amount of unbranded rust remover that contained HFA. Following his admission to the hospital, the patient suffered a sudden cardiac arrest with ventricular fibrillation in the pediatric emergency department. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation were carried out. Subsequently, continuous veno-venous hemodiafiltration (CVVHDF) was applied for twelve hours in the pediatric intensive care unit and he was discharged with a recovery. To the best of our knowledge, this case is the first pediatric case in the literature to survive after oral exposure and to receive successful CVVHDF.

Keywords

• hemodiafiltration
• hydrofluoric acid
• pediatric emergency department
• pediatric intensive care
• poisoning
• ventricular fibrillation