Reproductive hazards related to perchloroethylene. A review.

The literature of perchloroethylene (PER) was scrutinized to find answers to the following questions: (1) is an effect of PER on reproduction to be expected, and (2) if so, has such an effect actually been shown in animal experiments and/or in epidemiological studies? From this review it can be concluded that the first question should be answered in the affirmative, considering the various mechanisms capable of leading to defects in the reproductive processes and the information about how PER can interact (and in fact does interact) with these mechanisms. The few studies in which the effects of PER exposure on reproductive outcome have been studied are, however, not very conclusive. Some suggest an effect, others do not. In view of the incompleteness of the experimental results and the methodological shortcomings especially of the epidemiological studies, there is a need for a suitably designed epidemiological investigation on the reproductive consequences of exposure to PER. In order to avoid the methodological problems of the above-mentioned studies, the design should be a prospective one.