Handbook of Solvents - George Wypych - ChemTech - Ventech!

1416 Kaye H. Kilburn
caused blindness. 74 Its metabolism to formic acid suggests the possibility that of other central
nervous system effects.
White spirit is a mixture of straight and branched chain paraffins, naphthalenes and
alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons is used widely as a paint solvent. Ten studies of painters,
mostly in Nordic countries, have shown increased neurobehavioral symptoms and several
showed decreased performance on psychological tests. 11-14 Longitudinal studies showed an
almost doubled risk for neuropsychiatric disability pension in painters compared to construction
workers. Several such studies support the concept of neuropsychiatric impairment
and disability linked to the painting trade in many countries. 75-78 Several women in my consulting
practice had profound neurobehavioral impairment after entering their homes during
spray painting including unconsciousness which suggest there may be a considerable
problem from environmental exposures.
Many industrial painters exposures are to solvent mixtures. Those painting airplanes
where dust and hence fume exposure is limited by strict cleanliness, which means good air
hygiene for the workers, have little trouble compared to symptoms, impairment, disability
and brain atrophy with dementia in car and refrigerator painters. These groups supplied the
clear evidence of solvent effects in workers in Nordic countries that established how to assess
human subject’s neurobehavioral status and detect impairment that were discussed
early in this chapter. Many cross sectional studies showed adverse effects, excessive neuropsychiatric
symptoms and several longitudinal studies show greatly increased likelihood of
receiving a pension for neuropsychiatric disability. 2,78-80
Chemical companies fight the concept that chemicals damage human subjects. They
are more combative and better defended than are bacteria and other infectious agents. In the
past 25 years companies learned from asbestos litigation, the bankruptcy of Johns Manville
Company and the banning of asbestos to contest observations and their scientific basis and
frequently hire scientists to support their position of null effects-not harm and sponsor environmental
meeting and advertise their concern and sense of responsibility. They avoid or
shift responsibility for damage to the victim or community and the social security system.
The necessary banning of PCBs and chlordane enforced their strategy of “controversy”
even about incontrovertible facts. Perhaps, they count on having the 50 years that tobacco
companies enjoyed before having to accept responsibility for adverse effects of tobacco
smoking.
REFERENCES
1 K Kilburn, and R Warshaw, Epidemiology of adverse health effect from environmental chemicals,
Princeton Scientific Publishing Co., 1995, pp 33-53.
2 P Arlien-Soberg, Solvent Neurotoxicity, CRC Press, Boca Raton, 1992.
3 J Angerer, Scan. J. Work. Environ. Hlth., 11 (Suppl 1),45(1985).
4 K Kilburn, Chemical Brain Injury, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1998.
5 D Wechsler, Adult Intelligence Scale Manual, (revised), The Psychological Corporation, New York, 1981.
6 AR Luria, Higher Cortical Function in Man, Travistock, London, 1966.
7 W Halstead, Brain and Intelligence, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1947.
8 R Reitan, Percept. Motor Skills, 8, 271(1958).
9 D Hunter, Diseases of Occupations, 4th Edition, Little Brown, Boston, 1969.
10 H Hanninen, Brit. J. Indust. Med., 28, 374(1971).
11 B Knave, B Kolmodin-Hedman, H Persson, and J Goldberg, Work Environ, Health, 11, 49(1974).
12 S Elofsson, F Gamberale, T Hindmarsh, et al., Scand. J. Work Environ. Health, 6, 239(1980).
13 O Axelson, M Hane, and C Hogstedt, Scand. J. Work Environ. Health, 2, 14(1976).
14 P Arlien-Soberg, P Bruhm, C Gyldensted, and B Melgaard, Acta Neurol. Scand., 60, 149(1979).
15 R Feldman, J Chirico-Post, and S Proctor, Arch. Environ. Health, 43, 143(1988).