A Case of Methylmercury Poisoning
Since the early 1960’s the Asubpeeschoseewagong Netum Anishinabek in Northern Ontario have been living with the consequences of chronic methylmercury poisoning. From 1962 to 1970, mercury waste was dumped into the English-Wabigoon river upstream from Grassy Narrows First Nation, contaminating the wa...
Main Authors: | , |
---|---|
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Western Libraries
2022
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/uwomj/article/view/13516 |
id |
ftunivwontaojs:oai:ojs.uwo.ca:article/13516 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftunivwontaojs:oai:ojs.uwo.ca:article/13516 2023-05-15T13:28:34+02:00 A Case of Methylmercury Poisoning Wunder, Meaghan Bhati, Piali 2022-03-24 application/pdf https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/uwomj/article/view/13516 eng eng Western Libraries https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/uwomj/article/view/13516/11673 https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/uwomj/article/view/13516 Copyright (c) 2022 University of Western Ontario Medical Journal http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 CC-BY University of Western Ontario Medical Journal; Vol. 90 No. 1: Public Health (Publication Ahead of Print) 2560-8274 0042-0336 Methylmercury Minamata disease Grassy Narrows environmental pollution info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion Peer-reviewed Article 2022 ftunivwontaojs 2023-02-05T19:14:26Z Since the early 1960’s the Asubpeeschoseewagong Netum Anishinabek in Northern Ontario have been living with the consequences of chronic methylmercury poisoning. From 1962 to 1970, mercury waste was dumped into the English-Wabigoon river upstream from Grassy Narrows First Nation, contaminating the water and the fish within. In 1970, inappropriate mercury disposal was ceased, commercial fishing was prohibited, and individuals were advised not to consume fish from the river. These restrictions and their consequences profoundly affected the economic, cultural and medical wellbeing of the Asubpeechoseewagong people. Methylmercury poisoning, coined Minamata disease in Japan, has been one medical consequence of this pollution. Minamata disease describes irreversible damage to the central nervous system as a result of methylmercury poisoning, including lesions in the cerebellum, anterior calcarine cortex, and surrounding the central sulcus. Individuals commonly experience somatosensory disturbances and distal paresthesia, cerebellar ataxia and dysarthria, and visual field constriction. This case report will describe a young Asubpeechoseewagong person suffering the early consequences of methylmercury poisoning. Subsequently, the history of Minamata disease in Ontario, the pathophysiology of methylmercury poisoning, and investigations and management will be discussed. It is important to note that the story of this case is not a historical perspective. The Grassy Narrows First Nation continue to live with the results of this profound environmental injustice. In the words of Chief Simon Fobister, “we must not deny another generation of our children a bright future by refusing to clean our river.” Article in Journal/Newspaper anishina* Western Libraries OJS |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Western Libraries OJS |
op_collection_id |
ftunivwontaojs |
language |
English |
topic |
Methylmercury Minamata disease Grassy Narrows environmental pollution |
spellingShingle |
Methylmercury Minamata disease Grassy Narrows environmental pollution Wunder, Meaghan Bhati, Piali A Case of Methylmercury Poisoning |
topic_facet |
Methylmercury Minamata disease Grassy Narrows environmental pollution |
description |
Since the early 1960’s the Asubpeeschoseewagong Netum Anishinabek in Northern Ontario have been living with the consequences of chronic methylmercury poisoning. From 1962 to 1970, mercury waste was dumped into the English-Wabigoon river upstream from Grassy Narrows First Nation, contaminating the water and the fish within. In 1970, inappropriate mercury disposal was ceased, commercial fishing was prohibited, and individuals were advised not to consume fish from the river. These restrictions and their consequences profoundly affected the economic, cultural and medical wellbeing of the Asubpeechoseewagong people. Methylmercury poisoning, coined Minamata disease in Japan, has been one medical consequence of this pollution. Minamata disease describes irreversible damage to the central nervous system as a result of methylmercury poisoning, including lesions in the cerebellum, anterior calcarine cortex, and surrounding the central sulcus. Individuals commonly experience somatosensory disturbances and distal paresthesia, cerebellar ataxia and dysarthria, and visual field constriction. This case report will describe a young Asubpeechoseewagong person suffering the early consequences of methylmercury poisoning. Subsequently, the history of Minamata disease in Ontario, the pathophysiology of methylmercury poisoning, and investigations and management will be discussed. It is important to note that the story of this case is not a historical perspective. The Grassy Narrows First Nation continue to live with the results of this profound environmental injustice. In the words of Chief Simon Fobister, “we must not deny another generation of our children a bright future by refusing to clean our river.” |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Wunder, Meaghan Bhati, Piali |
author_facet |
Wunder, Meaghan Bhati, Piali |
author_sort |
Wunder, Meaghan |
title |
A Case of Methylmercury Poisoning |
title_short |
A Case of Methylmercury Poisoning |
title_full |
A Case of Methylmercury Poisoning |
title_fullStr |
A Case of Methylmercury Poisoning |
title_full_unstemmed |
A Case of Methylmercury Poisoning |
title_sort |
case of methylmercury poisoning |
publisher |
Western Libraries |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/uwomj/article/view/13516 |
genre |
anishina* |
genre_facet |
anishina* |
op_source |
University of Western Ontario Medical Journal; Vol. 90 No. 1: Public Health (Publication Ahead of Print) 2560-8274 0042-0336 |
op_relation |
https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/uwomj/article/view/13516/11673 https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/uwomj/article/view/13516 |
op_rights |
Copyright (c) 2022 University of Western Ontario Medical Journal http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 |
op_rightsnorm |
CC-BY |
_version_ |
1766404857143492608 |