Methyl chloride poisoning in four members of a family.

Accidental methyl chloride poisoning caused by gas leakage from a refrigerator through a ruptured rubber connecting tube occurred in four members of a family. All the patients had symptoms of central nervous system and kidney damage, while in three of them jaundice was observed. The outcome of the intoxication was good in all cases. Methyl chloride poisoning was first described by Gerbis in 1914 in two workers who were cleaning a methyl chloride container (Browning, 1965). Later cases were caused by gas leakage from refrigerators (Kegel, McNally, and Pope, 1929; Weinstein, 1937) some of which were fatal (Schwartz, 1926; Verriere and Vachez, 1949). One occurred in a man who was installing a refrigerator (Roche, Nicholas, and Marier, 1956) and others in industrial exposures (Hansen, Weaver, and Venable, 1953; Morgan, .1942).