ARGYRIA SECONDARY TO CHRONIC INGESTION OF COLLOIDAL SILVER

Background: Colloidal silver protein (CSP) has been used as a popular nutritional supplement for many years. CSP has been promoted to boost immune response and is claimed to be effective against many forms of infections. Although silver-containing drugs are no longer available for OTC sale, CSP is available in health food stores as well as over the Internet. We report a case of argyria due to chronic use of CSP. Case Report: A 35-year-old woman presented with bluish-gray discoloration of the skin and nail beds. The discoloration was more pronounced in sun exposed areas. The patient is a housewife with no hobbies involving chemicals or excessive outdoor activities. She has no underlying diseases and is on no medications except for a nutritional supplement called 'mild colloidal silver protein' containing 25 mcg/tsp of elemental silver. The patient had been taking this product orally, in accordance with the labeled instructions, instructions, daily for one year. Laboratory studies, including liver and renal functions, are all normal. Heavy metal screens of urine were all negative, including silver, lead, mercury, and arsenic. Skin biopsy was not done. Based on the patient's history of CPS use, the total cumulative dose of silver before the onset of skin discoloration was 66 mg. Discussion: Chronic exposure to silver-containing products has been known to cause silver deposition in various organ systems including skin, liver, kidney, gastrointestinal tract, brain and cornea. Such deposition results in chronic skin discoloration, which is effectively irreversible and untreatable. Although argyria is thought to be a relatively benign condition, silver deposition has been shown to be associated with central nervous system dysfunction in animals. In humans, there is one case report of seizures in a patient who had been taking a silver-containing product for 40 years and had a very high serum silver level. Although argyria has been reported with chronic ingestion of colloidal silver products, the estimated accumulated amount of elemental silver consumed in our patient is low compared to previously reported cases. Conclusion: We report this case to illustrate the potential for permanent, disfiguring complications of a commonly used nutritional supplement product.
Chomchai S, Kim SY. California Poison Control System, San, Francisco. University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, [...]