Neuropsychiatric Implications of Chronic Lead Exposure.

This report describes the case of a 42-year-old active duty officer with a history of anxiety, cognitive impairment, and paroxysmal hypertensive episodes associated with elevated body burdens of lead as measured in bone, while having low or unremarkable blood level measurements. Challenges related to work-up, treatments, and outcomes are discussed. An elevated body burden of lead may contribute to increased irritability, fatigue, and anxiety, mimicking posttraumatic stress disorder and other primary psychiatric conditions. This presentation highlights the need for an increased index of suspicion of lead poisoning in both medical and psychiatric care, particularly in military populations. PMID: 31670374 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Source: Military Medicine - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: Mil Med Source Type: research