Retinal Cadmium Accumulation in a Worker at a Locomotive Factory

Özet

The accumulation of cadmium (Cd) in the retina is an unusual condition and it can be seen as a result of long-term occupational exposure. The lesion seen in the retina was considered as a Cd accumulation if there was a high rate of Cd in the blood and urine. The aim of this case report is to describe retinal Cd accumulation due to high-dose Cd exposure in a patient working in a locomotive factory. A male patient, who has a high rate of Cd accumulation in the blood and diagnosed as cadmium-induced polyneuropathy, underwent an examination of the eye. Best-corrected visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and intraocular pressure measurements were normal. There were retinal pigment epithelium changes and hyper-reflected lesions in optical coherence tomography images and fundus autofluorescence images. Retinal Cd accumulation is unusual, but it can be seen as a result of long-term occupational exposure, especially in the metal industry. Keywords: Hyper-reflectance, Cadmium accumulation, RPE, Heavy metal induced retinopathy.