Man who turned blue because of silver therapy

Fourteen years ago, Paul Karason (58) applied colloidal silver on his face for treating dermatitis, but ended up contracting argyria, a condition in which his skin turned a permanent shade of blue

Fourteen years ago, Paul Karason (58) applied colloidal silver on his face for treating dermatitis, but ended up contracting argyria, a condition in which his skin turned a permanent shade of blue

Paul Karason experienced a bad case of facial dermatitis caused by stress over the death of his father. In the absence of antibiotics, he applied a preparation of colloidal silver, rather than using penicillin.

While the preparation did work, it left his skin permanently tinged blue, in a reaction called argyria.

Silver, with its antibacterial properties, was once a common ingredient in medicines, but its use was eliminated by the FDA in 1999.

Feeling blue: Paul Karason, before he contracted argyria and Karakos as he is now

Out of his shell

Karason first entered the limelight when he appeared on the Today show with Matt Lauer last year.

With his skin roughly the colour of a blueberry, Karason had become a recluse, but his television appearance forced him out of his shell, he said in a follow-up appearance on the same show yesterday.

Health problems

When Karason first appeared on the show, he was perfectly healthy otherwise. A year later, he has a different story to tell.

The 58-year-old has just finished battling prostate cancer. He has also had to have stints placed in his arteries.

"I had a blocked artery that required stints put in place, and prostate cancer ... Oh that was a thrill. My PSA (prostate specific antigen) numbers are way down now.

So presumably that's a good thing," he joked with Lauer. He also confirmed that he is no longer engaged.

When Lauer noted that Karason has come out of his shell since his last visit, he chuckled and remarked, "Well, I didn't have much choice. I couldn't find the cave I was looking for."

Escape stares

Karason has moved several times to escape negative attention due to his skin colour. He has now settled in Washington, where he praises the local healthcare.
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"Washingtonu00a0particularly Bellinghamu00a0has a medical community that's just absolutely outstanding," he said.

What is Argyria?

Argyria is caused by improper exposure to chemical forms of the element silver, silver dust, or silver compounds. The most dramatic symptom of argyria is that the skin becomes blue.
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It is believed to be permanent, but laser therapy has been successful in certain cases.