A mother of a 3 years old child comes to ED panicking that her child ingeste unknown amount of the below material 30 mintues back.She heard it is a rat poison and could be fatal. Child is asymptomatic and active.
Your junoir want to do gastric lavage and admit the child for observation.
Q1Do you agree with your junoir plan?
Q2What is the expected toxicity of this material?
Panicking Mom Cont!
Thanks all for your excellent comments
and I liked the "light River" advice to keep hazardous materials and objects away from kids reach
Silica gel comes in small paper packets that are included with many kinds of items . It is often found with shoes and purses, cameras and cell phones, in the pockets of coats and jackets, and in bottles of medicine such as vitamins.
Silica gel sometimes looks like little clear, round beads, and sometimes like very small rock crystals.
It is a “desiccant” which means it keeps things dry. It pulls water into itself so that mold and musty odors don’t get started and damage the items.
Silica gel is nontoxic but may present a choking hazard to small children.
Silica gel ingestion is relatively common, occurring mainly in young children; it is rarely symptomatic if any but is a source of unnecessary referrals to health care facilities.
Neither gastric lavage or admission is indicated
References:
Ophir Lavon, Yedidia Bentur .Silica Gel: Non-Toxic Ingestion with Epidemiologic and Economic Implications. Isr Med Assoc J. 2015 Oct;17(10):604-6.