Silver-containing products have been used for medicinal purposes since antiquity. Throughout the ages and indeed up until the present time, silver has been employed with the hopes of treating a myriad of diseases including the common cold, skin problems, infections, and even cancer. However, silver has no known biological role in human physiology, and taking silver may lead to adverse reactions. The better-known adverse reactions of silver include argyria, or a gray-blue cutaneous discoloration, which is a known effect of silver accumulation. Additionally renal or hepatic injury may also be experienced. Reports of neurological adverse reactions are rare, however, and the extant medical literature contains very few descriptions of such cases. We report herein a case of a 70 year old man who presented with seizures as the sole manifestation of silver toxicity after self-medicating with colloidal silver.

This case report documents the rare finding of argyria limited to the nails secondary to colloidal silver ingestion. We highlight the significance of early detection of argyria secondary to colloidal silver ingestion and offer photos of the subtle changes in the nails that indicate the development of argyria. With the popularity of over-the-counter supplementation, it is important for medical providers to be aware of early signs of argyria, prior to progressive, permanent pigmentary changes.

BACKGROUND: Argyria is a rare condition characterized by gray/blue dislocation of the skin caused by chronic exposure to silver salts.
METHODS: We review the case of an 81-year-old man who presented to the emergency department after a motor vehicle accident, was incidentally found to have skin discoloration, and was ultimately diagnosed with argyria. WHY SHOULD AN EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN BE AWARE OF THIS?: Although most emergency physicians will not complete a toxicology fellowship, all emergency physicians are on the front line of toxicological presentations and should be able to recognize argyria and differentiate this condition from other causes of skin discoloration.

We report a case of acute myeloid leukemia with complex cytogenetic abnormalities suggestive of preexisting myelodysplastic syndrome in a patient with habitual ingestion of colloidal silver as nutritional supplement for over 10 years and the medical literature is reviewed.

The search for new antibacterial products, the mechanisms of action of which differ from conventional antibiotics is a current a topical issue. The objective of our research is to identify the presence of silver in meat and organs of broiler chicks that had been given colloidal silver. The results show that the broiler chick meat contains silver in quantities safe for humans regardless of the use of colloidal silver. Comparison of meat analysis results in experimental and control groups indicate that the ratio of parameters distribution variance for all birds to the mean variance by group for each measured no statistical differences in the chemical composition of bird\'s meat of experimental and control groups. The analysis also confirmed the existing difference in chemical composition of leg muscle meat and chest muscle meat (P < 0.05), whereas leg muscle contains more fat (6.81% vs. 2.85%) and less protein (20.25% vs. 22.81%).

Argyria is a rare cutaneous discoloration caused by the intake of silver or various compounds containing silver. We report a case of argyria in a 73-year-old male following ingestion of colloidal silver as an alternative medicine over 5 years. He had a diffuse, slate gray discoloration of his face and hands. A biopsy specimen from the face revealed brown-black extracellular granules in the upper dermis and between collagen bundles. We also found silver particles in the mucous of the colon. The ingestion of colloidal silver appears to be increasing among patients using alternative health practices. We report this case to bring people\'s attention to the problems associated with the ingestion of colloidal silver.