A silver metallic element that exists as a liquid at room temperature. It has the atomic symbol Hg (from hydrargyrum, liquid silver), atomic number 80, and atomic weight 200.59. Mercury is used in many industrial applications and its salts have been employed therapeutically as purgatives, antisyphilitics, disinfectants, and astringents. It can be absorbed through the skin and mucous membranes which leads to MERCURY POISONING. Because of its toxicity, the clinical use of mercury and mercurials is diminishing.
D009941
Organomercury Compounds
Organic compounds which contain mercury as an integral part of the molecule.
Compounds, Organomercury
D004232
Diuretics
Agents that promote the excretion of urine through their effects on kidney function.
A disease of the scalp that may affect the glabrous skin and the nails and is recognized by the concave sulfur-yellow crusts that form around loose, wiry hairs. Atrophy ensues, leaving a smooth, glossy, thin, paper-white patch. This type of disease is rare in the United States and more frequently seen in the Middle East, Africa, Southeastern Europe, and other countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea. (Arnold, Odom, and James, Andrew's Diseases of the Skin, 8th ed, p319)