A photo of Calgonate, and an article from Journal of Medical Toxicology about treatment of HF exposure

Can you make your own gel to treat a Hydrofluoric Acid Exposure?

🕖 Reading Time, 2 minutes

Hydrofluoric acid is frequently used in the petroleum and semiconductor industry. When it comes in contact with skin, the acid burns and penetrates deeply. Fluoride in the acid binds to calcium in the body, leaching it out of bone. This can cause substantial pain and even death.

An area as small as a 4-inch square area of skin exposure could result in fatally decreased potassium, calcium, and magnesium levels.

One common poison center recommendation is to apply premanufactured calcium gluconate gel (2.5%) to the area. Since even many hospitals don’t stock this gel, they recommend making your own with calcium solution and a water-based lubricant.

Unfortunately, based on research conducted by one of my Emergency Medicine partners, who is also a toxicologist, mixing your own gel doesn’t work. The calcium precipitates out resulting in a slurry that is too low in calcium to be useful. Unfortunately, if you want to treat small topical Hydrofluoric acid burns, you’ll have to buy a premixed gel.

Read the abstract from the 2024 ACMT Annual Scientific Meeting:   Journal of Medical Toxicology2024 ACMT Annual Scientific Meeting Abstracts – Washington, DC. J. Med. Toxicol. 20, 86–192 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13181-024-00990-6

Mike Shertz MD/18D

Dr. Mike Shertz is the Owner and Lead Instructor at Crisis Medicine. Dr. Shertz spent over 30 years gaining the experience and insight to create and provide his comprehensive, science-informed, training to better prepare everyday citizens, law enforcement, EMS, and the military to manage casualties and wounded in high-risk environments. Using a combination of current and historical events, Dr. Shertz’s lectures include relevant, illustrative photos, as well as hands-on demonstrations to demystify the how, why, when to use each emergency medical procedure you need to become a Force Multiplier for Good.

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