Clinical neurological findings among metal degreasers exposed to chlorinated solvents

Among industrial solvents in present use trichloroethylene belongs to those which have been the concern of most neurological and occupational investigations since the beginning of this century. Reports on a broad spectrum of neurotoxicity are however mostly based on case-studies and accidental circumstances. The object of this study was to examine clinical neurological manifestations after long-term exposure to degreasing solvents, mainly trichloroethylene. The population was 99 metal degreasers, the design a historical cohort study. The most marked finding was a highly significant dose-response relation between solvent exposure and motor dyscoordination--a finding that was retained after multivariate control of relevant confounders. Vibration thresholds increased by solvent exposure at bivariate level, but the multivariate analysis showed that age was explaining most of the increase. No significant cranial nerve dysfunction was found.