Moth balls and pregnancy

Newborn Infant With Mothball Toxicity Due to Maternal Ingestion

Case Reports

. 2019 Jun;143(6):e20183619.

doi: 10.1542/peds.2018-3619. Epub 2019 May 7.

Mitali Sahni¹, Yanick Vibert², Vineet Bhandari², Ogechukwu Menkiti²

Affiliations

¹ Division of Neonatology, St Christopher's Hospital for Children, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania [email protected].
² Division of Neonatology, St Christopher's Hospital for Children, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

PMID: 31064798
DOI: 10.1542/peds.2018-3619

Case Reports

Mitali Sahni et al. Pediatrics. 2019 Jun.

. 2019 Jun;143(6):e20183619.

doi: 10.1542/peds.2018-3619. Epub 2019 May 7.

Authors

Mitali Sahni¹, Yanick Vibert², Vineet Bhandari², Ogechukwu Menkiti²

Affiliations

¹ Division of Neonatology, St Christopher's Hospital for Children, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania mitali12@gmail. com.
² Division of Neonatology, St Christopher's Hospital for Children, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

PMID: 31064798
DOI: 10.1542/peds.2018-3619

Abstract

Naphthalene poisoning due to exposure to mothballs is a common cause of toxicity in children worldwide. Naphthalene toxicity is known to cause hemolytic anemia, methemoglobinemia, and hepatic and renal injury. Neonates are more susceptible to the effects of oxidative stress from naphthalene because of their low glutathione stores and immaturity of hepatic enzymes. However, there are no reported cases of chronic fetal exposure to naphthalene during pregnancy. We report a novel case of chronic fetal exposure to naphthalene-containing mothballs that occurred from the second trimester through the third trimester of pregnancy. Our patient presented with hyperbilirubinemia, requiring exchange transfusion, severe hemolytic anemia, pulmonary hypertension, respiratory failure, and renal failure and progressed to develop "bronze baby" syndrome. Pregnant mothers should be diligently screened for such exposures and if found should receive psychiatric evaluation and counseling to prevent such devastating effects in neonates.

Conflict of interest statement

POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST: The authors have indicated they have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.

Cited by

All in a scent - naphthalene dependence confined to pregnancy: a case report.
Wimalasiri I, Suraweera C. Wimalasiri I, et al. BMC Psychiatry. 2022 Nov 19;22(1):723. doi: 10.1186/s12888-022-04369-1. BMC Psychiatry. 2022. PMID: 36403047 Free PMC article.
Mothball Ingestion in the Setting of G6PD Deficiency Causing Severe Hemolytic Anemia, Methemoglobinemia, and Multiple Organ Failure in a Toddler.
Kuwada G, Murakami A, Glaser DW, Ingraham SE, Purohit PJ. Kuwada G, et al. Hawaii J Health Soc Welf. 2022 Jan;81(1):3-5. Hawaii J Health Soc Welf. 2022. PMID: 35028588 Free PMC article.
A Glyphosate-Based Formulation but Not Glyphosate Alone Alters Human Placental Integrity.
Simasotchi C, Chissey A, Jungers G, Fournier T, Seralini GE, Gil S. Simasotchi C, et al. Toxics. 2021 Sep 13;9(9):220. doi: 10.3390/toxics9090220. Toxics. 2021. PMID: 34564371 Free PMC article.

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Newborn with Perinatal Naphthalene Toxicity after Maternal Ingestion of Mothballs during Pregnancy

Case Reports

. 2020;117(1):127-130.

doi: 10.1159/000504345. Epub 2019 Nov 21.

Grant Shafer^{1 2}, Athis Arunachalam^{3 4}, Pablo Lohmann^{3 4}

Affiliations

¹ Division of Neonatology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA, [email protected].
² Division of Neonatology, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas, USA, [email protected].
³ Division of Neonatology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA.
⁴ Division of Neonatology, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas, USA.

PMID: 31751989
DOI: 10.1159/000504345

Case Reports

Grant Shafer et al. Neonatology. 2020.

. 2020;117(1):127-130.

doi: 10.1159/000504345. Epub 2019 Nov 21.

Authors

Grant Shafer^{1 2}, Athis Arunachalam^{3 4}, Pablo Lohmann^{3 4}

Affiliations

¹ Division of Neonatology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA, gshafer@bcm. edu.
² Division of Neonatology, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas, USA, [email protected].
³ Division of Neonatology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA.
⁴ Division of Neonatology, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas, USA.

PMID: 31751989
DOI: 10.1159/000504345

Abstract

Maternal ingestion of naphthalene-containing mothballs is an uncommon cause of perinatal toxicity. Naphthalene toxicity is associated with methemoglobinemia, hypotension, hemolytic anemia, and hyperbilirubinemia, as well as other hepatic, renal, and respiratory complications. Naphthalene exposure is a common cause of toxicity in older children, but is rarely described in neonates. The neonatal cases described in the literature focus primarily on maternal inhalation as opposed to ingestion. We present a case of perinatal toxicity due to repeated maternal ingestion of naphthalene-containing mothballs during pregnancy. The patient presented with methemoglobinemia, hypotension, hemolytic anemia, and hyperbilirubinemia. Sepsis or pulmonary hypertension were the initial working diagnoses, as the mother did not provide the history of ingestion until after the patient's clinical status worsened. This case highlights the importance of obtaining a thorough maternal history and considering maternal ingestion when the etiology of symptoms is not clear.

Keywords: Maternal ingestion; Mothball; Naphthalene; Perinatal toxicity; Pica.

Cited by

All in a scent - naphthalene dependence confined to pregnancy: a case report.
Wimalasiri I, Suraweera C. Wimalasiri I, et al. BMC Psychiatry. 2022 Nov 19;22(1):723. doi: 10.1186/s12888-022-04369-1. BMC Psychiatry. 2022. PMID: 36403047 Free PMC article.

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

Naphthalene - cosmetic ingredient, description and use

September 16 2020

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Name INCI	Naphthalene
Traditional name	Naphthalene
Component category	Assets, antiseptic
Application	Used in remedies for problem skin
Cosmetic effect	Anesthetizes, has antiseptic effects
Purpose	Antiseptic, antimicrobial
Effective for skin or hair types	Oily skin, problematic skin
Origin	Natural
Hazard	Low
Danger for pregnant women	Safe when used as directed
Allergenicity	Possible individual intolerance

Naphthalene is made from crude oil or coal tar. It is also formed during combustion, which is why naphthalene is found in cigarette smoke, car exhaust, and wildfire smoke. It is used as an insecticide and pest control. Naphthalene was first registered as a pesticide in the US in 1948 year.

Naphthalene is usually sold according to its freezing point or solidification point, since there is a correlation between the freezing point and the naphthalene content of the product; the correlation depends on the type and relative amount of impurities present.

In their many years of work, specialists have developed naftalan therapy, proven effective in the treatment of the uncomfortable chronic disease of psoriasis and associated psoriatic arthritis. Naftalan has an anti-inflammatory and desensitizing effect, which affects protein metabolism and electrolyte metabolism. nine0003

Some specific and unique procedures are used in the treatment - naftalan baths, snaftalan iontophoresis, mastic therapy (a medicinal combination of naftalan, paraffin and camphor helps to reduce pain and recover from a stroke), ultrasound with naftalan and phototherapy.

Instructions on how to find products that contain the specified ingredient.

1. Copy the name of the ingredient.

2. Paste the value into the search bar. nine0003

3. Wait until the site searches and selects cosmetics with the specified ingredient.

4. Select "All search results".

5. Select cosmetics by filters (Price, Product group, Type of skin or hair Brand).

Always great deals on natural cosmetics can be found in section PROMOTIONS in Lantal online store!

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Iron deficiency anemia in pregnant women - Burkov S.

Iron-deficiency anemia - a very common disease characterized by a decrease in the iron content in the blood serum and bone marrow, as a result of which the formation of hemoglobin is disrupted. Statistics show that at the end of the gestational period, 1/3 of pregnant women develop severe anemia. In recent years, due to a drop in the standard of living, primarily a deterioration in the quality of nutrition, in our country the number of women with anemia, which is alimentary ^* dependent disease has increased significantly.

Why is anemia dangerous for a pregnant woman? First of all, a change in many functions of the body: a decrease in immunity, the development of dystrophic processes in various organs and, above all, the uterus, the frequent addition of late toxicosis, premature birth, increased blood loss during childbirth. Anemia affects the development of the fetus.

Causes of iron deficiency anemia nine0135

The main reason for the development of iron deficiency anemia is poor, qualitatively inadequate nutrition and blood loss of various nature. Anemia violates the balance existing in the body between the intake and excretion of iron. The natural source of iron is food. Among the factors predisposing to the development of anemia both outside and during pregnancy should also be called vitamin deficiency (winter - spring), environmental pollution with chemicals, pesticides, high mineralization of drinking water (negatively affects the absorption of iron from food). nine0003

In addition, any diseases accompanied by lead to anemia. even slight blood loss (hemorrhoids, endometriosis, diseases occurring with nosebleeds, glomerulonephritis, periodontal disease and others). There is the following pattern: the presence of anemia during pregnancy in the patient's mother, the patient's prematurity leads to the development of anemia in her. Anemia is usually (according to some reports 40 times more often) diagnosed in the second half of pregnancy nine0124 .

Symptoms of anemia

The clinical manifestations of iron deficiency anemia consist of symptoms associated with anemia. Weakness occurs dizziness , headache , heartbeats, dyspnea , fainting, decreased performance, insomnia. Iron deficiency anemia is characterized by the appearance of changes in the skin, nails, hair, muscle weakness. The skin becomes not only pale, but also dry, cracks appear on it. There is a slight yellowness of the hands and a triangle under the nose due to a violation of the metabolism of carotene in iron deficiency. Angular stomatitis occurs (cracks in the corners of the mouth), the shape of the nails changes, they flatten and become concave and brittle. Redness and soreness of the tongue, atrophy of its papillae characterize the phenomena of glossitis (more common in B12-deficiency anemia). Hair becomes dry, brittle, falls out a lot. There is a perversion of taste and smell: the desire to eat chalk, eraser, clay, sand, raw cereals, sniff liquids with a pungent odor (kerosene, acetone, naphthalene). Sometimes there are also deviations from the cardiovascular system: frequent heartbeat, shortness of breath, chest pain . Blood pressure may be lowered. nine0003
Diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia

For the diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia, is carried out clinical blood test , in which a decrease in the level of hemoglobin (below 110 g / l) and erythrocytes (below 3.7 x 10 ¹² /l), low color index (less than 0.85). Of great importance is the determination of serum iron. You need to know that in order to obtain reliable results, iron preparations should not be taken at least 5 days before blood sampling. With iron deficiency anemia, the content of serum iron is below 12.5 µmol/l. nine0003
Usually, doctors judge the severity of the disease by the level of hemoglobin. Mild degree of anemia is characterized by decrease in hemoglobin up to 110 - 90 g / l; medium - from 89 to 70 g / l and severe - 69 g / l and below.

The clinical manifestations of anemia described above usually appear with moderate severity, with a mild course of the disease, there may be no complaints, and the diagnosis is established only by a blood test. Iron deficiency anemia is not a contraindication for pregnancy, however, treatment of the disease should begin from the very first diagnosis. nine0003
Treatment and prevention of anemia in pregnant women

Anemia pregnant women need drug treatment and diet therapy . Given the large number of causes leading to anemia, therapy begins with an attempt to eliminate them. First of all, a woman is recommended a good diet, the use of foods containing a sufficient amount of iron and protein. You should know that 6% of iron is absorbed from meat, and only 0.2% from plant foods. Therefore, the diet should pay the most attention to meat, fish, poultry, eggs, milk and dairy products. It is recommended to eat 120 - 200 g of meat or 150 - 250 g of fish per day, 1 egg, up to 1 kg of dairy products - cheese, cottage cheese, milk, kefir, etc., 80 - 100 g of fat, vegetables and fruits - about 800 g (some of which must be eaten raw). The intake of vitamins and multivitamins is shown. nine0003
Naturally, a woman suffering from iron deficiency anemia needs to take iron preparations . The maximum amount of iron that can be absorbed from food is 2.5 mg / day, and from medicinal preparations - 15-20 times more. In this case, iron preparations for parenteral administration (for injections) are not necessary, since they do not accelerate the treatment of anemia. Of course, with oral administration of iron-containing drugs, adverse reactions from the gastrointestinal tract (nausea, upset stools) are not uncommon, abdominal pain may occur, but they decrease if you take pills with meals, and not before it, although in this case iron absorbed worse. nine0003
For the treatment and prevention of anemia in pregnant women, there are several "anti-anemic" drugs, the treatment of which is safe, however, a woman must agree on the choice of a drug with her doctor.

It should be remembered that the accepted iron stains the feces black, so this color change should not be scary.
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