LEAD ENCEPHALOPATHY CAUSED BY INGESTION OF ILLICITLY DISTILLED WHISKEY

Leaded gasoline abuse: the role of tetraethyl lead

Volatile substance abuse is practised worldwide however reports of the abuse of leaded gasoline have been limited to northern Canada, southwestern USA and the Australian Outback. Chronic, heavy abuse of leaded gasoline results in an encephalopathy, cerebellar and corticospinal symptoms and signs, dementia, mental status alterations, and persistent organic psychosis. Much of this is due to the hydrocarbons of gasoline while the tetraethyl lead contributes to the altered mental status and is responsible for the persistent psychosis. Lead chelation therapy is not rational and has not been shown to benefit these patients.

Neurophysiological approaches to the detection of early neurotoxicity in humans

Various neurophysiological methods, including electroencephalography, electromyography, nerve conduction velocities, and evoked potential techniques, have been used to detect early signs of neurotoxicity in humans. These methods have been applied to groups of occupationally exposed workers and their referents in epidemiologic studies, to patients with suspected or proven diseases after long-term work in toxic environment, and to human subjects during or after experimental exposure. The main body of knowledge arises from epidemiologic studies of occupationally exposed subjects, and several chemicals widely used in industry have been shown to be neurotoxic. Of these, e.g., lead causing peripheral neuropathy, some solvents like carbon disulfide, n-hexane, and methyl n-butyl ketone also causing neuropathy and at times central nervous system effects as well as acryl amide have been studied using neurophysiological approaches. Several other solvents including toluene, xylene, and various mixtures of organic solvents have been suspected to be neurotoxic, and nervous system effects have been ascribed to those in several neurophysiological studies. Some studies have elucidated acute nervous system effects of ethyl alcohol or industrial solvents in experimental situations applying, for example, evoked potential techniques or electroencephalography.