Inorganic phosphate (laxative) poisoning resulting in tetany in an infant

We present here a case of inorganic phosphate ingestion causing acute hypocalcemia, hyperphosphatemia, and tetany in a 3 1/2-month-old infant. Symptoms were quickly relieved by the intravenous administration of calcium, and the patient's serum levels returned to normal levels within 24 hours. This case adds another example to the vast variety of poisonings by ingestion and serves to alert the emergency room physician to the possibility of phosphate ingestion when confronted with tetany of obscure etiology.