An unusual trichloroethanol fatality attributed to sniffing trichloroethylene.
We report the death of a 28-year-old man due to sniffing a contact cement containing trichloroethylene. Initial testing revealed the presence of 80 mg/L trichloroethanol in cardiac blood, and the death was ruled as being due to trichloroethanol toxicity resulting from chloral hydrate ingestion. However, further investigation of the case revealed that the trichloroethanol resulted from trichloroethylene abuse. Subsequent targeted analysis for trichloroethylene, four months after the death, confirmed its presence in cardiac blood (1.1 mg/L), bile (4.5 mg/L), and liver (2.5 mg/kg). Trichloroethanol was initially detected during routine drug screening that employed gas chromatography (GC) using an HP-5 column with electron capture detection and subsequently quantitated by GC using the same column as for the initial screen, but with flame-ionization detection (FID); ethchlorvynol was the internal standard. Trichloroethylene was quantitated by headspace GC with a Restek Rtx-BAC1 column and FID; 1,1,1-trichloroethane was the internal standard.
Jones
Graham R
GR
Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, 7007 - 116 Street NW, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6H 5R8. graham.jones@gov.ab.ca
Singer
Peter P
PP
D000280:Administration, Inhalation; D000328:Adult; D002423:Cause of Death; D002697:Chloral Hydrate / Q000506:poisoning; D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D005023:Ethylene Chlorohydrin / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000506:poisoning; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D053593:Forensic Toxicology; D006801:Humans; D019570:Inhalation Exposure; D008297:Male; D015813:Substance Abuse Detection; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000209:etiology* / Q000378:metabolism
D002697:Chloral Hydrate; D005023:Ethylene Chlorohydrin; C005849:2,2,2-trichloroethanol