Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsSymptomsCausesDiagnosisTreatmentA Word From VerywellNext in Lead Poisoning GuideSymptoms of Lead Poisoning
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Symptoms
Causes
Diagnosis
Treatment
A Word From Verywell
Next in Lead Poisoning Guide
Lead is a naturally occurring metal with no benefit to the body.
Toxic exposure can affect the brain and other vital organs, causing neurological and behavioral changes, gastrointestinal illness,kidney impairment, and developmental delays. At very high levels, it can be fatal.
Lead poisoning can be diagnosed with blood and imaging tests. If lead concentrations are high, treatment may involve the use of chelating drugs that bind to lead so that it can be eliminated from the body.
Verywell / Emily Roberts
Lead Poisoning Symptoms
While lead poisoning can cause injury to almost every organ of the body, the brain, and gastrointestinal tract are usually where the first signs of disease appear.
Thesymptoms of lead poisoningare often subtle and difficult to spot. In some people, there may be no symptoms. The most commonly seen include:
Unlike adults, children may exhibit extreme behavioral changes (including hyperactivity, apathy, and aggressiveness) and will often fall developmentally behind other kids of the same age. Permanent intellectual disability can sometimes occur.
Complications of lead poisoning may include kidney damage, hypertension, hearing loss, cataracts, male infertility, miscarriage, and preterm birth.
If lead levels increase to over 100 μg/dL, brain inflammation (encephalopathy) may occur, resulting in seizures, coma, and even death.
Lead Poisoning Signs and Symptoms
Lead toxicity in the U.S. has been on the decline since it was first banned from paint and gasoline back in 1978. Since then, other laws have been enacted to reduce lead levels in plumbing, industrial solvents, and common household goods. Despite this, lead poisoning in the U.S. still occurs.
Children are at especially high risk, due in part to their small body mass and relative level of exposure. They also tend to absorb lead more readily in tissues of the brain and exhibit hand-to-mouth behaviors that promote exposure.
Other typical causes of lead exposure include:
Lead poisoning can also occur during pregnancy, caused whentransient bone lossleaches lead into the system and exposes the developing fetus to high levels of toxicity.
© Verywell, 2018
What Is Lead Poisoning?
Lead toxicity can bediagnosedthrough a variety of lab and imaging tests. The main test, called the blood lead level (BLL), can tell us how much lead there is in your blood.
In an ideal situation, there should be no lead, but even low levels may be considered acceptable. The blood lead concentration is measured in terms micrograms (μg) per deciliter (dL) of blood. The current acceptable range is:
While the BLL can give a clear picture of your current status, it cannot tell us the cumulative effect that lead has had on your body. For this, the doctor may order non-invasive X-ray fluorescence (XRF), essentially a high-energy form of X-ray which can assess how much lead there is in your bones and reveal areas of calcification indicative of long-term exposure.
Other tests may include blood film examination to look for changes in red blood cells and erythrocyte protoporphyrin (EP) which can give us a clue as to how long the exposure has been going on.
How Lead Poisoning Is Diagnosed
This main form oftreatment for lead poisoningis calledchelation therapy. It involves the use of chelating agents that actively bind to lead and form a non-toxic compound that can readily be excreted in urine.
Chelation therapy is indicated in people with severe lead poisoning or signs of encephalopathy. It may be considered for anyone whose BLL is above 45 μg/dL. Chelation therapy has less value in chronic cases below this value.
Therapy may be delivered either orally or intravenously. The most commonly prescribed agents include:
Side effects may include headaches, fever, chills, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, shortness of breath, irregular heartbeat, and chest tightness. On rare occasions, seizure, respiratory failure, kidney failure, or liver damage has been known to occur.
How Lead Poisoning Is Treated
Lead poisoning can be scary since you can’t always tell if you or your child has been exposed. There are ways to test your home if you are concerned, including home testing kits available for between $10 and $30 at hardware stores.
In the meantime, to further reduce your family’s risk:
Symptoms of Lead Poisoning
SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Jacobs, D.Lead Poisoning: Focusing on the Fix.J Pub Health Manage Practice.2016; 22(4):326-330. DOI: 10.1097/PHH.0000000000000430.Warniment, C.; Tsang, K.; and Galazka, S.Lead Poisoning in Children.Am Fam Physician.2010; 81(6):751-57.
Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Jacobs, D.Lead Poisoning: Focusing on the Fix.J Pub Health Manage Practice.2016; 22(4):326-330. DOI: 10.1097/PHH.0000000000000430.Warniment, C.; Tsang, K.; and Galazka, S.Lead Poisoning in Children.Am Fam Physician.2010; 81(6):751-57.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Jacobs, D.Lead Poisoning: Focusing on the Fix.J Pub Health Manage Practice.2016; 22(4):326-330. DOI: 10.1097/PHH.0000000000000430.Warniment, C.; Tsang, K.; and Galazka, S.Lead Poisoning in Children.Am Fam Physician.2010; 81(6):751-57.
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