Chongqing Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Chongqing, People's Republic of China.
Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2012 Sep;25(4):501-5. doi: 10.2478/s13382-012-0049-z. Epub 2012 Sep 29.
Manganese is a trace element and a cofactor of many enzymes, so it is essential for physiologic functioning, but it is also a neurotoxin at high doses. Manganism is most often caused by occupational exposure. It is manifested by a myriad of signs and symptoms ranging from the neurasthenia syndrome, such as headache and dizziness, to the Parkinson-like syndrome, depending on the blood manganese levels as well as the duration of exposure. We are reporting a case of manganism using both clinical and occupational hygiene investigation methods. The patient presented the neurasthenia syndrome accompanied by hypertonicity of arm muscles and was diagnosed to have mild chronic manganism. Finally, the patient was discharged from the hospital after the treatment had improved her condition. In China, there are many chronic manganese cases, partly due to a rapid industrial development with great use of Mn and the low self-protection awareness among the workers and the factories management that cannot catch up with the speed of the economical development. Therefore, factories are responsible for improving the conditions at the workplace.
锰是一种微量元素和许多酶的辅助因子，因此对生理功能至关重要，但在高剂量下也是一种神经毒素。锰中毒最常由职业暴露引起。它表现为一系列的症状和体征，从神经衰弱综合征，如头痛和头晕，到帕金森样综合征，这取决于血锰水平和暴露时间。我们报告了一例使用临床和职业卫生调查方法的锰中毒病例。患者表现出神经衰弱综合征，伴有手臂肌肉张力增高，并被诊断为轻度慢性锰中毒。最后，经过治疗改善了患者的病情后，她出院了。在中国，有许多慢性锰中毒病例，部分原因是工业的快速发展，大量使用锰，而工人和工厂管理层的自我保护意识较低，无法跟上经济发展的速度。因此，工厂有责任改善工作场所的条件。
