A Common Household Stain Remover Is Sending People to…

A Common Household Stain Remover Is Sending People to Emergency Rooms. And most doctors have never been taught how to recognise it. Hydrofluoric acid, HF, is sold freely in stores as a rust remover and fabric stain remover. No prescription. No special safety requirements for consumers. A housewife uses it to remove fruit stains from a tablecloth. 12 hours later she is in your emergency room with excruciating pain and nothing visible on examination. She gets labelled as anxious. Given analgesics. Sent home. By the time the deep tissue necrosis appears, it may be too late. Why HF is unlike any acid you learned about in medical school: Most acids cause immediate visible burns. Patient feels pain instantly. Severity is obvious. Damage stays superficial. HF is the opposite. At low concentrations, the kind in household products, there is minimal surface injury. The molecule silently penetrates skin and tissues. No pain. No visible damage. No alarm. Then the fluoride ion is released deep inside. It sequesters calcium and magnesium. Inhibits the sodium-potassium pump. Causes local electrolyte imbalance, va