Wounds resulting from intradermal injection of sodium hypochlorite: a case report

Caustic substances can inflict severe damage on tissues upon contact. Knowledge about skin damage caused by sodium hypochlorite is quite limited, with only a few reports available in the literature.

A 79-year-old female with severe cognitive decline presented with multiple skin ulcerations that were covered by a blackish-greyish eschar and surrounded by a purple erythematous halo. During the medical examination, in a moment of clarity the patient confessed to self-inflicting the wounds through injections of bleach at night. Analysis of the liquid beneath the eschar from the ulcer swab and the histological examination confirmed the compatibility of lesions with the injection of sodium hypochlorite.

Intradermal injection of sodium hypochlorite can cause severe damage to the skin tissue, with rapid formation of ulcerations covered by a blackish-greyish eschar. The surrounding skin may have an erythematous, swollen appearance and a purple-colored halo around it. Moreover, for a patient with a neuropsychiatric medical history, negative laboratory findings, or irregular skin lesions, self-induced ulcerations should always be considered in the differential diagnosis.