Poison Control Centers Warn About Toxic Chemical in At-Home COVID-19 Test Kits

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Some at-home rapid COVID-19 tests contain a toxic chemical that may be harmful to both children and adults, according to health officials.

The Cincinnati Drug and Poison Information Center reported an uptick in accidental exposures to a possibly toxic substance, sodium azide, in at-home COVID-19 test kits, according to a blog post. Meanwhile, the National Poison Control Center issued a warning about the chemical.

โ€œIt is important to know that the extraction vial in many rapid antigen kits includes the chemical sodium azide as a preservative agent,โ€ the center said. โ€œThe BinaxNow, BD Veritor, Flowflex, and Celltrion DiaTrust COVID-19 rapid antigen kits all contain this chemical.โ€

Sodium azide is a colorless, odorless powder that testers dip cotton swabs into. The chemical is found in herbicides, pest control agents, and airbags for cars.

โ€œSmall doses of sodium azide can lower blood pressure, and larger doses may cause more serious health effects,โ€ an advisory from Health Canada also said. โ€œProClin is also found in many kits. It contains chemicals that can cause skin and eye irritation, as well as allergic reactions.โ€

Some hospitals around the United States say they have received a surge in phone calls about exposures to the chemical.

โ€œWe started getting our first exposures to these test kits around early November,โ€ said Sheila Goertemoeller, pharmacist and clinical toxicologist for the Cincinnati Childrenโ€™s Hospital Medical Center. โ€œIt was, really, all ages.โ€

โ€œMostly, Iโ€™ve been very worried about our young children.โ€

Accidental exposure is occurring among both children and adults, said Dr. Kelly Johnson-Arbor, with the National Capital Poison Center in Washington, told WNEP over the weekend.

โ€œPeople might mistake them for eye drops. Children might drop it onto their skin. Adults will sometimes mistakenly put them into their eyes,โ€ she said.

โ€œYou donโ€™t want to leave it on the skin because it could potentially cause an allergic reaction or a skin rash.

By Jack Phillips

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