Korean J Med.  2012 Aug;83(2):258-262.

A Case of Acute Aluminum Encephalopathy with Intraperitoneal Bladder Rupture Following Aluminum Bladder Irrigation in a Patient with Normal Renal Function

• An YH
• Kim SG
• Park JY
• Jang GS
• Kim SY
• Hong EY
• An JS

Abstract

Acute aluminum intoxication is uncommon in clinical practice but can be fatal. Most cases have been reported in patients with decreased renal function, especially dialysis patients. We describe a case of acute aluminum encephalopathy with intraperitoneal bladder rupture following aluminum bladder irrigation in a patient with normal renal function. A 51-year-old woman with a radical hysterectomy and external irradiation therapy for cervical cancer 15 years earlier was admitted due to gross hematuria. An aluminum intravesical irrigation was performed. After 1 day of intravesical irrigation, abdominal pain and fever developed. Abdominal CT images demonstrated bladder perforation and peritonitis. An emergency laparotomy was performed. Operative findings showed a perforated dome of the bladder with gray colored peritoneal fluids. Two days after the operation, she complained of numbness and pain in the left side of her face. Acute aluminum encephalopathy was diagnosed after excluding infectious, rheumatological, and other vascular causes. She was treated with combined intravenous deferoxamine and hemodialysis.

Keyword

Acute aluminum encephalopathy; Aluminum bladder irrigation; Bladder perforation; Deferoxamine

MeSH Terms

Abdominal Pain
Aluminum
Ascitic Fluid
Deferoxamine
Dialysis
Emergencies
Female
Fever
Hematuria
Humans
Hypesthesia
Hysterectomy
Laparotomy
Middle Aged
Peritonitis
Renal Dialysis
Rupture
Urinary Bladder
Uterine Cervical Neoplasms
Aluminum
Deferoxamine