The Mercury CFL Foot-Rot Warning; real or fake?

I got this warning in my E-mail at my work from the safety folks about some dude who stepped on a broken CFL bulb and almost lost his foot as a result of mercury poisoning.

ENERGY SAVER GLOBE –MERCURY EXPOSURE

What happened.

On the 10thFebruary 2011 the energy saver globe fused at the home of the IP. He did not wait for the globe to cool down, standing on a chair with a piece of cloth and remove the energy saver globe. Due to the heat of the energy saver globe he dropped the globe. As the globe fell on the floor it “explode” (brake). As he descend from the chair he stepped into the broken glass and exposed mercury powder.

The IP was admitted to hospital for treatment of the cuts. He spent two weeks in ICU and at one stage it was feared that his foot need to be amputated. Currently his foot is connected to a vacuum pump to remove continuously dead tissue. Long road of recovery is awaiting him.

WARNING!!!! THE PICTURES BELOW ARE VERY GRAPHIC AND COULD MAKE YOU WANT TO PUKE.

They ain't kidding about that warning; if you don't want to see pics of a foot with the skin flayed away from it, right down to the bone, don't click on the link.

There are warnings out there about the dangers involved in cleaning up CFL bulbs but, they don't mention anything about rotting away skin as a result of exposure.

Watch Out! That Energy-Saving Bulb Can Kill

The United States Environment Protection Agency (EPA) recommends the guidelines below when dealing with a broken mercury bulb:

Open a window and leave the room (restrict access) for at least 15 minutes. Remove all materials you can without using a vacuum cleaner. And in doing this, wear disposable rubber gloves, if available (do not use your bare hands).

Carefully scoop up the fragments and powder with stiff paper or cardboard. Wipe the area clean with a damp paper towel or disposable wet wipe. Sticky tape (such as duct tape) can be used to pick up small pieces and powder.

Place all clean-up materials in a plastic bag and seal it.

After this is done, put into the outside trash can for onward transfer to the community’s refuse collection site if no recycle option is available.

Wash your hands after disposing of the bag.

When inhaled, the mercury substance is believed to cause migraine, disorientation, imbalances, insomnia, irritation, inflammation and death. A body contact with the substance could lead to allergies, severe skin conditions and other diseases.

A cut in the foot from a broken CFL bulb could get the foot infected with mercury poisoning.

Tribune

Not everyone is buying into this fantastic story though:

Brief Analysis

The claims in the message remain unsubstantiated. CFL's do contain a small amount of mercury and caution is required when cleaning up and disposing of broken bulbs. Exposure to mercury can certainly have serious health implications. However, there is currently no credible evidence that backs up the claim that the foot injury depicted in these photographs was the result of mercury exposure.

But what about the foot injury shown in the above images? CFL's do contain a tiny amount of mercury and mercury exposure in sufficient quantities can certainly have serious health effects. But, that said, there is no compelling or credible evidence to back up the claim that the foot injury depicted in the above photographs was caused by mercury exposure from a broken CFL. Or any other source of mercury for that matter. Mercury has long been used in various common instruments and devices and, historically, in mining, medicine and many other applications. Often, the potential for mercury exposure from such devices and applications has been vastly greater than that posed by the tiny amount of mercury found in a typical CFL. The adverse health effects of mercury exposure have been well documented over many years. But, despite this, I could find no information that suggests that mercury in a wound would cause the sort of significant injury and decay shown in the above photographs. Even a detailed clinical review about mercury exposure and cutaneous disease makes no reference to mercury related injuries like those shown in the images.

Certainly, mercury could be more quickly absorbed via an existing wound or cut and if a large amount is absorbed, the victim could suffer immediate symptoms such as loss of appetite, fatigue, insomnia, and changes in behavior or personality. Longer term exposure could result in damage to the brain, kidney and lungs along with nausea, abdominal cramps, diarrhoea, eye irritation, weight loss, skin rashes, and muscle tremors.

Hoax Slayer.com

They have no evidence that the injury was caused by exposure to mercury but, they don't present any evidence that it was not caused by it either. This could be the result of an extreme allergic reaction or the mercury combining with another infection to create the wounds depicted.

Is this another case of internet bred hysteria or is there any evidence out there to proove that that injury was, indeed caused by mercury poisoning?

That right there is horrible,

That should make CFLs banned.

Glad I don't use them anymore.

YUK! I don't use those bulbs either.
The pics are very disturbing!!! Wow!
I think I'll stock up on the old bulbs before they are taken out of circulation...

I posted this in the Medical Issues board because members with medical backgrounds tend to pay attention to this one more than others. I was hoping to hear from someone with medical experience who could tell us whether this type of injury could really result from mercury poisoning.

If this is for real, it needs to be more widly known. My kids run around the house barefoot all day and I would hate for something like this to happen to one of them.

How would a vacuum pump remove dead tissue?

I'm calling fake based on that and the fact that the big toe has a graft on it.

Looks more like someone has got their foot caught in a machine(Boat propeller, rotary hoe, etc...) and is waiting for the next graft. Note that the second largest toe has been unnaturally shortened and had enough time to heal.

Yeah, because we all know that mercury filled lamps (along with an electronic ballast) are MUCH better for the environment, right?
ETA Only CFL bulbs are legal in Holland now. No regular kind around except for old stock, maybe, big maybe though.

Originally posted by OccamAssassin
How would a vacuum pump remove dead tissue?

I'm calling fake based on that and the fact that the big toe has a graft on it.

Not fake...

Negative pressure wound therapy. Had a friend, who had to use one of the pumps for 5 months to help her foot after a bad motorcycle accident.

Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) is a technique used to facilitate faster wound healing. The basic goal of NPWT is to use a suction or vacuum procedure to draw excess fluid from a wound, thereby improving circulation and disposing of cellular waste. This technique is used for several types of wounds, especially large and chronic wounds as well as burns. Based on the type of wound involved, NPWT may employ the use of gauze, foam pads, or a special sponge placed atop or within the wound and a tubing system connected to a vacuum pump.

It is generally believed that negative pressure wound therapy benefits wound healing in several areas. It creates a moist and closed wound environment, balances fluids, removes dead tissue, increases circulation, decreases bacteria, and promotes growth of white blood cells. However, the physiological effects of negative pressure wound therapy are still not completely understood, and some have questioned whether or not it truly speeds wound healing faster than other methods.

www.wisegeek.com...

Des

good god! That was awful..I don't know about the claim..it looks more like a huge gash..I have never liked those bulbs..the light is weird..like too green/yellow or too blue and sterile.

reply to post by Destinyone


Would the vacuum remove dead tissue as claimed?

Originally posted by OccamAssassin
reply to post by Destinyone

 

Would the vacuum remove dead tissue as claimed?

What do you see as tissue....it starts with fluids. If you can only see tissue as big chunks of flesh, you are wrong.

To answer your question, yes it does work. As tissue decays, it turns to a liquid state. The pump does remove excess fluid, and decaying tissue, as it sloughs off.

If you want I can google more detailed info for you...

Des

reply to post by Destinyone

As tissue decays, it turns to a liquid state.

Is that before or after it turns black and gangrenous?

Originally posted by OccamAssassin
reply to post by Destinyone

 

As tissue decays, it turns to a liquid state.

Is that before or after it turns black and gangrenous?

I don't have a medical degree...google is your friend. Your initial response to the OP was that the pump in the story was fake. I posted info that it is not, and is used in the medical field.

I refer you back to the original link I posted on use of vacuum pumps on wound therapy. There are related links on that link.

Des

reply to post by Destinyone

I don't have a medical degree...google is your friend. Your initial response to the OP was that the pump in the story was fake.

I didn't say the pump was fake......I said using the pump to remove dead tissue as well as the graft on the big toe indicated that this is a fabrication.

Normally, if there is gangrene present, it would be removed by a scalpel. I have never heard of a doctor using vacuum therapy for removing dead tissue. Vacuum therapy is for promoting circulation.

Another issue....why is the lost tissue on the top of the foot and not where the alleged CFL cut the foot?

Surely there would have been some loss of tissue at the initial wound?

I would expect to see tissue lost at this site first as it would have been the most contaminated by phosphor and mercury vapour.

Add to the fact that the source looks like it was made by a 12 year old........bells start ringing.

Fake

reply to post by OccamAssassin


Well...as the OP said. They posted this story to a medical forum, to ask for the validity on it. Guess I'll wait for the experts to weigh in....

Des

My initial problem with the "emano significant il" is in the wording or phrasing. There is also no significant wound on the bottom of the foot. Some of us can remember getting cuts or scrapes as kids and the initial treatment was Mecurochrome. A mercury based treatment. It worked great.

I'm having some trouble believing the story as presented. It actually looks more like a case of Vib. V bacterial infection. I did have a friend die of that after losing both legs and an arm from a simple cut during a fishing trip a few years ago.

Originally posted by OccamAssassin
Add to the fact that the source looks like it was made by a 12 year old........bells start ringing.

Check out the Hoax Slayer link in the OP. They have the "official warning" that I got from my safety department in their section marked "EXAMPLES"

It looks like a pretty well made up, official warning.

If it is a hoax, it was made up well enough to fool the people in the safety department at my work ( A big evil pharmacutical corporation BTW ).

reply to post by FortAnthem

Check out the Hoax Slayer link in the OP. They have the "official warning" that I got from my safety department in their section marked "EXAMPLES" It looks like a pretty well made up, official warning. If it is a hoax, it was made up well enough to fool the people in the safety department at my work ( A big evil pharmacutical corporation BTW ).

The safety sheet is a "risk management" safety/data sheet. If you own a business in Australia.....you need a safety sheet for pretty much anything that has the possibility to be dangerous. In my workshop, there is one for every piece of equipment that a staff member has to use. Before the employee can operate the machinery....they have to read the safety sheet in full and sign it in front of a supervisor.

A running (true) joke when I was in first year at uni, was about a mine in the area had to have a handrail installed. The one metre (odd) hand rail required a nine page safety sheet so that it could be installed safely.

something isn't right about this

mercury is an antibiotic, Anti =against biotic= life in other words it's poison

it has however bee an ingredient in topical wound ointments for ..ever

so I'm calling a raging infection from mercury contact bogus

if he went insane and had liver failure or some such that could be mercury maybe

The people at Snopes are skeptical.

The two images of cuts to the sole of the right foot may conceivably show damage from stepping on a fluorescent tube, but if so the culprit is not the mercury vapor but the mix of phosphors (fluorescent compounds) which coat the glass.

"The biggest immediate injury threat from a broken lamp is from the phosphor-coated glass. If cut with fluorescent lamp glass, any phosphor that gets into the wound is likely to prevent blood clotting and will interfere with healing." (

That makes more sense than mercury vapor as a cause of tissue damage.

Very basically; fluorescent bulbs/tubes contain a small amount of liquid mercury which is vaporised when the light is switched on. This causes a reaction whereby UV light is emitted and then changed to visible light by the presence of phosphor powder.

Phosphor powder is very bad stuff to get in a wound as it prevents clotting and retards healing. Wounds from broken fluoro tubes often result in bad scarring, particularly keloid scarring, because of the phosphor powder, even though the original wound may have been small because the glass is so fine. Since fluoro tubes are also under partial vacuum, breakages can be violent with shrapnel like pieces of glass flying around.

Info

Snopes.com


They seem to think that the phosphors can increase the severity of an injury and are probably more to blame, if this injury really resulted from a CFL bulb. They cannot definitively determine whether the injury in the photos was caused by a CFL bulb or not.

I wonder if the original source of this warning can be tracked down?

reply to post by FortAnthem


Complete BS. (Not you OP, just the story you posted.)

Mercury is a neurotoxin, but it doesn't do anything to regular flesh. In fact, it is probably a very good antiseptic if it wasn't for the side effects of anything carried away in the blood stream.

We played with mercury as kids, it is pretty cool to run across your fingers and hold in the palm of your hand. Of course, it is very dangerous if inhaled, ingested, or somehow carried in the bloodstream, but it would not, and could not cause foot rot.