Mercury intoxication presenting with hypertension and tachycardia

Abstract

An 11 year old girl presented with hypertension and tachycardia. Excess urinary catecholamine excretion suggested phaeochromocytoma but imaging studies failed to demonstrate a tumour. Other symptoms included insomnia and weight loss, and she was found to have a raised concentration of mercury in blood and urine. Mercury intoxication should be considered in the differential diagnosis of hypertension with tachycardia even in patients presenting without the skin lesions typical of mercury intoxication and without a history of exposure.