De Freitas M R, Nascimento O J, Chimelli L
Departamentos de Medicina Clínica, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Brasil.
Arq Neuropsiquiatr. 1991 Dec;49(4):460-4. doi: 10.1590/s0004-282x1991000400017.
A man who worked as an operator in a factory of sterilization of heat-sensitive materials has been exposed to ethylene oxide for seven years. He developed a mild sensori-motor polyneuropathy. The electromyography and nerve condition studies showed an axonal degenerative type of neuropathy. The sural nerve biopsy revealed mild loss of myelinated fibers, some fibers with axonal degeneration, some clusters of regeneration and few rows of myelin ovoids in the teased nerve fiber preparation. This is the first report of ethylene-oxide polyneuropathy in Brazil.
