A morbidity study of former pentachlorophenol-production workers.

Abstract

Pentachlorophenol (PCP) is a pesticide that was once widely used for wood preservation. Commercial PCP contained impurities including higher chlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (CDDs) and chlorinated dibenzofurans (CDFs). We investigated the effects of occupational exposure to PCP and its CDD and CDF contaminants on the skin, liver, porphyrin metabolism, and central and peripheral nervous systems. In 1986 we conducted a medical survey of 366 workers who had been engaged in the production of PCP at a single plant between 1938 and 1978. The referent group consisted of 303 workers from the same plant who were not exposed to these or related compounds. Exposure was determined from computerized personnel records. The medical survey included an administered questionnaire, medical record review, physical examination by dermatologists, internists, and neurologists, and analysis of 24-hr urine for quantitative porphyrins among other tests. In this paper we present the results of analyses of the general health, chloracne, and porphyrin metabolism end points. The general health status of PCP workers was similar to unexposed workers, but 17.8% of PCP workers had evidence of current or past chloracne. PCP workers with chloracne had significantly higher mean urinary excretion of coproporphyrins (117. 0 vs. 90.6 microg/24 hr) than unexposed workers after controlling for potential confounders. Workers with chloracne who had worked with both PCP and polychlorinated biphenyls had significantly higher mean urinary excretions of hepta-, penta-, and coproporphyrins than unexposed workers. We conclude that occupational exposure to PCP is associated with chloracne and biochemical abnormalities which may persist years after exposure.

Occupational Acne

“…In 1979, the incidence of chloracne was reported to be 17.5% in 2000 patients with Yucheng disease (oil disease), which resulted from consuming the food products contaminated by PCBs and PCDFs in Taiwan [17]. Earlier, PCBs have been used frequently as wood preservatives [18].…”

Effluents from a pulp and paper mill: a skin and health survey of children living in upstream and downstream villages

“…13 The commonest skin problem encountered by pulp and paper workers is dermatitis (both irritant and allergic). [8][9][10][11] Thus dermatitis or any non-specific inflammation of the skin was further assessed because it could have been associated with exposure to river water and thus effluent from the mill. The prevalence of dermatitis was found to be the highest in Sering (4.8%), the village closest downstream to the mill.…”

“…Possible health problems derived from the contact or consumption of river water if concentrations of chlorinated dioxins were high include skin conditions such as chloracne and porphyria cutanea tarda [8][9][10] ; as well as more non-specific dermatitis. 11 These have been documented in people exposed to high concentrations of these substances.…”

Mild pentachlorophenol-mediated uncoupling of mitochondria depletes ATP but does not cause an oxidized redox state or dopaminergic neurodegeneration in Caenorhabditis elegans

“…PCP is #54 in the most recent, 2019 List ( ATSDR, 2017 ). Reported non-acute effects include chloracne in workers who were occupationally exposed ( Hryhorczuk et al 1998 ), cancers ( Cui et al 2017 ), and gestational diabetes ( Huo et al 2022 ); additional health effects have been reviewed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency ( U.S. EPA., 2010 ).…”