Document yRzrz15Q2Jk9O6OLL80gNDdX

for their irritant action on the gastrointestinal system In industry, these compounds can produce lesions of the eye, causing lights to appear to have a halo Antimony and its compounds are irritating to the skin and mucous membranes and are systemic poisons It resembles the action of lead in causing a metallic taste in the mouth, vomiting, colic, loss of appetite and weight, but diarrhea is much more common Effects of antimony resemble those of arsenic pri marily m the dermatitis, which may start as an inflammation of the hair follicles and pro gress through pus formation and sloughing to leave a contracted scar Chronic inhalation of antimony tnoxide pro duces a reduction in white blood cells and damage to the liver Chrome exposure can produce much damage even when the total amount absorbed is less than the LD for a single acute dose Arsenic, in the form of arsenic tnoxide, produces inflammation of the stomach and intestines and causes nervous collapse How ever, cases of severe industrial poisoning are rare There is some contradiction in the lit erature as to the acute toxicity of arsenic tn oxide, and it is possible that this contradiction is caused by vanations in mipunties within the compound Men who handle the solid compounds of arsenic may suffer from a husky voice and cough, perforation of the nasal septum, ulcera tion of the skm, loss of hair and nails, warts, and sometimes skin cancers which tend to follow a slow and not very malignant course These troubles are all severe nuisances, but they are practically never fatal and seldom dis abling Arsenic is a highly cumulative poison, being deposited in all the tissues of the body, with the largest quantities m the hver and kidneys There are also considerable deposits m the hair and nails where arsenic may be detected about two weeks after the beginning of ex posure and where it persists for months and sometimes for years after the exposure is terminated Inhaled arsenic is excreted to a considerable extent through the kidneys and can be detected in the unne, within a few hours of the start of the exposure and for a long time after The compound BAL (2,3-dimercapto-l- propanol) was developed as an antidote for arsenical gas poisoning It is effective in pre vention of poisoning from otherwise harmful doses of the arsenic compounds in general, and m the treatment of existing cases of poisoning, although cases have been reported in which BAL was not effective Arsine {arsenic hydnde) Severe and acute industrial poisonings with arsenic are likely to be the result of inhalation of arsine, often produced accidentally when hydrogen is generated in the presence of a material which contains arsenic The gas has been reported in the acid cleaning of filter plates, in the handling of wet dross from a light metals plant, in the cleaning of tank cars which have held sulfuric and hydrochloric acids, in the cleaning of pipes with an acid contaminated with arsenic, in the precipitation of cadmium with metallic zinc, and in other operations Arsine gas causes a characteristic syndrome of massive hemolysis leading to renal failure It is associated with nausea, vomiting, diar rhea, change in skm color, disturbance of vas cular tone, electrocardiographic abnormality, and liver disfunction If the patient survives long enough, manifestations of chronic arsenic poisoning may appear After exposure, a latent period of 1 to 36 hours may ensue In halation of 250 ppm is instantly lethal Ex posures of 25-50 ppm for half an hour are lethal and 10 ppm are lethal after longer exposure The mean lethal dose (LDTM) is unknown in man, but m small mammals is about 0 5 mg/kg Arsine gas can be fixed by tissues other than blood It binds to the kid neys and liver and inhibits respiration of slices of these tissues in vitro In low concen tration exposures, clearance of arsine from plasma, where it dissolves into the erythrocyte, is rapid and efficient When high concentra tions of arsine gas are suddenly dissolved in plasma, in large acute exposures, the amount of circulating arsine may exceed the binding capacity of the erythrocytes, and the gas may damage vital organs directly This would ex plain death due to arsine poisoning before hemolysis occurs The possibility of arsine formation should always be considered when there is freshly 1127