Cryptorchidism, chest deformities, and other congenital anomalies in three brothers.

vacuolation. The Purkinje cells were severely damaged and the endothelial lining of some of the cerebral blood vessels was swollen and had separated from the surrounding tissues. Neither ethylene chlorohydrin, nor chloracetic acid were found on toxicological examination of the blood and tissues. Discussion No descriptions are available of the effects in humans after drinking ethylene chlorohydrin, but extrapolating from the data obtained with rats it is likely that 1 or 2 ml. would be lethal for this exploring toddler. Ethylene chlorohydrin is also toxic by inhalation and by absorption through the unbroken skin. Browning (1965) has reviewed the 8 reports where the chemical entered the body through these routes in industrial accidents. Carpenter, Smyth, and Pozzani (1949) found experimentally that exposure to 32 p.p.m. of ethylene chlorohydrin in air for 4 hours killed half their rats, while 9 cases of illness caused by breathing low concentrations of the substance over a long period were described by Goldblatt and Chiesman (1944). These patients complained chiefly of nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Because amateur photographers might work in ill-ventilated rooms they might encounter toxic concentrations of this volatile poison. In the fatal inhalation cases symptoms appeared only insidiously, while the rats left by Ambrose (1950) in lethal concentrations of the gas died 1-2 hours after the completion of their experimental exposure but appeared well up to the time of their deaths. Some of the industrial deaths reviewed by Browning (1965) and the 5 cases of illness described by Bleckat and Strube (1968) were caused by the chemical contaminating the unbroken skin. Similarly , Ambrose (1950) showed that small amounts of the poison applied to the intact epidermis of laboratory animals can be fatal. Thus, the studies of the industrial accidents and the experiments on animals have shown that inhalation of the gas and skin contact with this chemical should be avoided. Ethylene chloro-hydrin is also extremely poisonous when taken by mouth, and, therefore, to avoid domestic accidents, especially to children, a less toxic agent should be found as a simple film cement. Summary A 23-month-old boy drank 1-2 ml. of ethylene chlorohydrin and died. The clinical course of his illness and the necropsy findings are described. The dangers of the chemical are discussed, and it is recommended that less toxic products should be sought as film-base solvents for amateur use. kindly gave permission to publish this case. performed the toxicological analyses, …