Thallium exposure at low concentration leads to early damage on multiple organs in children: A case study followed-up for four years

Abstract Thallium (TI) is one of the most toxic heavy metals and priority pollutant metals. The emerging TI environmental pollution worldwide has posed a great threat to human health. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) has not provided certain risk and severity of adverse health effects of TI in the range of 5–500 μg/L. Moreover, there is still a lack of evidence about the adverse impacts of TI on children health. We aim to investigate the early adverse effects of TI on children health and provide references for the WHO to establish stricter safety limits of TI. Six children aged 1–9 years were detected urinary TI. and many clinical laboratory parameters related to blood routine, hepatic, renal, myocardial, and coagulation function as well as serum electrolyte from 2015 to 2019. The urinary TI concentration was ranged from 13.4 μg/L to 60.1 μg/L with a mean of 36.1 μg/L and a median of 34.8 μg/L in six children in 2015. Although only four cases felt a little poor appetite, many laboratory abnormalities indicated early damage in liver, renal, and myocardial function in all cases in 2015. After treatment and followed-up for four years, though their urinary TI concentration dropped below 5 μg/L, their liver and renal function did not completely recover, and their myocardial function seemed exacerbated. Results indicated that impaired liver, renal, and myocardial function were closely associated with elevated urinary TI concentration in children. With the increasing use of TI in high-tech industries and worldwide emerging TI environmental-contamination zones, it is urgent to establish stricter safety limits of TI and pay more attention to the adverse health effects of TI on children. Summary We found relative low concentration of thallium (13.4 μg/L to 60.1 μg/L) impaired liver, renal, and myocardial function in six children. After treatment and followed-up for four years, though their urinary TI concentration dropped below 5 μg/L, their liver and renal function did not completely recover, and their myocardial function seemed exacerbated.