Citation

Hunsaker DM, Spiller HA, Williams D. J. Forensic Sci. 2005; 50(4): 942-946.

Affiliation

Office of the Chief Medial Examiner, Urban Govermnent Center, Louisville, Kentucky 40204, USA. stinknlex@aol.com

Copyright

(Copyright © 2005, American Society for Testing and Materials, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

16078504

Abstract

Selenium is a ubiquitous element in the environment essential to the human diet and widely utilized in industrial processes. Fatal human selenium intoxication is rare. The authors report a case in which investigators recovered a bottle of gun-bluing agent beside a 24-year-old man. He exhibited signs and symptoms typical of acute selenium intoxication presenting with nausea and vomiting, followed by pulmonary edema and rapid cardiovascular collapse approximately 3 to 4 h after ingestion. Classic electrocardiographic (EKG) changes, which have been reported to occur in acute selenium intoxication, included sinus tachycardia with ST wave alteration. Toxicological results confirmed elevated blood and tissue concentrations. The cause of death was ascribed to acute selenium intoxication, which ensued rapidly after oral consumption. The manner of death was suicide. This case report, which presents an overview of acute and chronic selenium poisoning, underscores the value of thorough toxicologic analyses of tissue and body fluids in humans.