title: Nervous system dysfunction among workers with long-term exposure to manganese.
abstract: Neurological disorders, bearing many similarities to Parkinson's disease, have been associated with environmental and occupational exposure to manganese (Mn). To document early nervous system dysfunction associated with long-term exposure to Mn, a battery of neurofunctional tests was administered to workers employed in Mn alloy production. Study participation was 95% (n = 115). A matched pair design was used; actively working men, with no history of workplace exposure to neurotoxins, were recruited from the region as referents. Matching was done on the variables: age (+/- 3 years), educational level (+/- 2 years), smoking status, and number of children. Stationary environmental sampling indicated that Mn levels varied widely (geometric means: Mn dust, 0.89 mg/m3; respirable Mn, 0.04 mg/m3). The alloy workers had significantly higher levels of whole blood Mn (geometric mean: 1.03 microgram/100 ml vs 0.68 microgram/100 ml); no differences were observed for urinary Mn. Univariate analysis (paired t test, Signed Rank and McNemar) and multivariate analysis of variance (Hotelling-Lawley statistic) revealed that the pairs differed on symptom reporting, emotional state, motor functions, cognitive flexibility, and olfactory perception threshold; verbal fluency, basic mathematics, reading capability, and attentional capacity were similar. These findings are consistent with current knowledge on brain Mn activity and suggest that manifestations of early manganism can be observed in well designed population studies, using sensitive testing methods.
authors.affiliation: Centre pour l'étude des interactions biologiques entre la santé et l'environnement (CINBIOSE), Université du Québec, Montréal, Canada.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mergler
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Huel
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bowler
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Iregren
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bélanger
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Baldwin
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tardif
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Smargiassi
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Martin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect / Q000187:drug effects; D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D003071:Cognition / Q000187:drug effects; D004522:Educational Status; D005190:Family; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008345:Manganese / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine; D008669:Metallurgy; D008875:Middle Aged; D009048:Motor Skills / Q000187:drug effects; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009420:Nervous System / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000503:physiopathology; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced*; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D012903:Smell / Q000187:drug effects; D012907:Smoking
chemical_list: D008345:Manganese