Rhode Islands.- A 25-year-old American woman went to emergencies after feeling afflicted by some discomforts such as fatigue, weakness and a rare symptom: her blood was turning blue. This unusual case occurred last Thursday in the city of Providence, located in Rhode Island, USA, and was mentioned in a study published by Drs. Otis Warren and Benjamin Blackwood in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Doctors used the term “cyanotic” to refer to the peculiar symptom, which they attributed to the woman having been using an anesthetic called benzocaine in large quantities to treat toothache. Dr. Warren, who serves in the emergency unit at Miriam Hospital, told the media outlet CNN that he had only seen a case like this during his residency, so he had no trouble identifying the condition of this new patient.
It’s one of those rare cases they teach us about, for those you study, you take tests, but rarely see,” he said.
The woman was shy of “acquired methemoglobinemia,” which consists of a reaction caused by certain medications that prevent the blood from getting oxygen to tissues.
This is what the patient’s blood looked like when it was extracted. Photo: Special
Although bright red blood is generally associated with oxygen-rich blood, the specialist says blue blood patients often record fairly high oxygen levels. This would be explained by the way the blood “holds” oxygen “selfishly” preventing it from being released and thus reaching the tissue that needs it, which makes the patient look blue. Fortunately, the woman recovered after Dr. Warren gave her two doses of methylene blue, a substance that helps restore oxygen levels in her blood. However, this rare symptom can be fatally dangerous. The doctor warned that when blue blood levels exceed 50%, the patient may go into a coma, and if it is greater than 60%, it can cause death.
