Lead Poisoning Can Be Easily Misdiagnosed as Acute Porphyria and Nonspecific Abdominal Pain

Table 1

The abnormal laboratory results obtained on admission and discharge of patient.

Laboratory data	On day 1 of admission	On day 19 after chelation therapy	Normal range
Hemoglobin	9.4 g/dL	11.5 g/dL	13.5–17.5
Hematocrit	27.9%	42%	41–53%
AST	57 U/L	32 U/L	0–37 U/L
ALT	87 U/L	40 U/L	0–40 U/L
Blood lead level	62.8 g/dL	31 g/dL	<40 μg/dL
Urine delta-ALA	81.8 mg/L	nil	<7 mg/L/24 hr
Urine PBG	1.0 mg/L	nil	<4 mg/L/24 hr

ALT = alanine aminotransferase; AST = aspartate aminotransferase; PBG = porphobilinogen; ALA = aminolevulinic acid.