Chronic allyl chloride poisoning. An epidemiology, clinical, toxicological and neuropathological study.

It was previously reported that chronic exposure to allyl chloride resulted in liver and kidney damage. No neurotoxic effect of allyl chloride had been noticed until two outbreaks of polyneuropathy without liver and kidney dysfunction due to exposure to allyl chloride in China in the early 1970's. Epidemiological and clinical studies done within 1973-1982 revealed that the main risk of industrial exposure to allyl chloride is damage to the peripheral nervous system. Polyneuropathy is thought to be the main clinical manifestation of chronic allyl chloride poisoning. Electroneuromyography is essential and valuable for early diagnosis and biological monitoring. Toxicological and neuropathological studies in rabbits and mice have given the evidence of a pattern of central-peripheral distal axonopathy in peripheral nervous system which has further confirmed the neurotoxicity of allyl chloride found in man. Based on the above results, the maximum allowable concentration of allyl chloride and diagnostic criteria for chronic allyl chloride poisoning are proposed.