In November 2015, 13 cases of mercury poisoning were detected among attendees and residents of a home day care center after identification of elevated urine mercury levels in a hospitalized child who attended the day care center. The source of the mercury was an antique sphygmomanometer that was placed in the day care center as an educational toy. The owners were unaware that the device was leaking elemental mercury without appearing to be broken. Exposure continued for nearly 6 months before detection during an epidemiologic investigation.
Investigation and Results