Ingesting concentrated hydrochloric acid can cause pain, difficulty swallowing, nausea, and vomiting.
Ingestion of concentrated hydrochloric acid can also cause severe corrosive injury to the mouth, throat
esophagus, and stomach, with bleeding, perforation, scarring, or stricture formation as potential sequelae.
Hydrochloric acid has various applications in the medical field. It is used as a: Tuberculocide (for
disinfecting surfaces potentially contaminated by tuberculosis bacteria). Disinfectant.
Skin exposure to low concentrations of hydrogen chloride gas or hydrochloric acid causes erythema and
inflammation of the skin whereas high concentrations can cause severe chemical burns to the skin and
mucous membranes.
Some acid burns are made worse if rinsed (flushed) with water.
Carbolic acid or phenol does not mix with
water, so use alcohol first to flush the chemical off the skin and then flush with water.
If alcohol is not
available, flush with a large amount of water. Do not flush the eye with alcohol.
