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Brain damage from solvent (insect killer)?

Posted by jakeg @jakeg, Nov 27, 2020

I've been in my basement for a 5-6+ hours a day watching tv for over a year now and there is this closet thing that doesn't have a door but has a curtain blocking it with a bunch of paint cans and other stuff and theres always been a death like smell if i got close to the closet but the whole basement didn't stink I could only smell it if i got really close to the closet and recently i cleaned it out back there and i found out the smell was coming from a partially opened ortho systemic insect killer bottle and I just wanted to know if it's possible i have gotten some sort of brain damage from it btw I haven't had any headaches or felt sick while being down there and plus im a teenager if that could be a factor

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Moderator
Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | Nov 27, 2020

@jakeg, It’s a good thing that you found the source of the odour, a partially opened bottle of insect killer. I hope that you sealed it and put it outdoors right away. If you are concerned about potential health effects of this exposure, I recommend that you talk to your doctor.

Have you told your parents about the insecticide? How well ventilated is the basement?

REPLY
1 reply
jakeg | @jakeg | Nov 28, 2020
In reply to @colleenyoung "@jakeg, It’s a good thing that you found the source of the odour, a partially opened..." + (show)
@colleenyoung

@jakeg, It’s a good thing that you found the source of the odour, a partially opened bottle of insect killer. I hope that you sealed it and put it outdoors right away. If you are concerned about potential health effects of this exposure, I recommend that you talk to your doctor.

Have you told your parents about the insecticide? How well ventilated is the basement?

Jump to this post

The basement is pretty closed off but should i be worried? The whole basement didn't smell of the odour i only smelt it when i got really close to the closet and plus the majority of the time i spent in the basement i had a dehumidifier running since it gets pretty humid down there when it gets warm out so that might have helped to clean the air. Is it possible that i could have got brain damage from this?

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1 reply
Moderator
Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | Nov 28, 2020
In reply to @jakeg "The basement is pretty closed off but should i be worried? The whole basement didn't smell..." + (show)
@jakeg

The basement is pretty closed off but should i be worried? The whole basement didn't smell of the odour i only smelt it when i got really close to the closet and plus the majority of the time i spent in the basement i had a dehumidifier running since it gets pretty humid down there when it gets warm out so that might have helped to clean the air. Is it possible that i could have got brain damage from this?

Jump to this post

@jakeg, if you're concerned about harmful health effects, you should consult your doctor. I'm not a medical professional and this site is for patients to support patients. There's no way anyone here could assess your exposure accurately. Speaking as a layman, I doubt you have brain damage. You didn't even experience mild side effects like headaches or nausea (feeling sick). The smell is a warning sign. Please seal the container and remove it from the house, then talk to you doctor. Okay?

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Erika | @erikas | Nov 30, 2020

@jakeg Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. You will notice that I changed the title of your question. I did this to make it easier for other members to connect and join the conversation.

You are concerned about brain damage from insect killer that left an odor in a confided place (basement). As Collen said, I'd talk to the adults in your life and also consult a medical provider. It sounds like you don't have any symptoms. Did I get that right? I'm wondering if your family ever utilizes (uses) a nurse helpline through your local hospital? These nurse helplines are typically free and will triage (assess) what the next steps are care (if any) should be.

May I ask if you feel comfortable talking to the adults in your life about your question?

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