The Uses of Epidemiology in the Study of Neurotoxic Pollutants: Lessons from the Workplace

摘要: An exponential increase has occurred since World War II in the production of synthetic chemicals. During this 40-year period, chemical capacity increased worldwide by more than 350-fold [1]. More a thousand new compounds are now produced each year and added to 40,000 pure chemicals 2 million mixtures, formulations, blends already commercial use [2]. unfortunate consequence "chemical revolution" been release into human environment wide variety toxins. Because inadequacies premarket testing programs [3], precise data lacking concerning number toxic commerce. Exposures have, however, found produce spectrum illnesses, among them cancer from exposure benzene [4], vinyl chloride [5], aniline dyes [6]; heart disease carbon disulfide [7] trinitrotoluene [8]; hepatitis methylene dianiline [9]; chloracne polychlorinated biphenyls tetrachlorodibenzodioxin [10]; male reproductive impairment dibromochloropropane [11]. Neurological mental disorders also have caused Such illnesses for centuries recognized consequences lead [12], arsenic [13], mercury [14]. recently, acrylamide [15]; [16]; dimethylaminopropionitrile (DM APN) [17]; n-hexane [18]; organophosphates such as parathion [19], leptophos [20], tri-ortho cresyl phosphate (ТОРС) [21]; styrene [22]; 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic