Chronic Perchlorethylene Poisoning*

A case of a forty-seven year-old male with a three-year history of daily prolonged exposure to perchlorethylene has been reported. Acute symptoms included nausea, vomiting, dizziness, staggering gait and disorientation followed by deep sleep. Chronic symptoms were fatigue, irritability, lability of mood, inappropriate affect, mild disorientation, difficulty with recent memory and perserverative stammering speech, which remained over a twelve-month follow-up period despite lack of further exposure. The literature on perchlorethylene intoxication was reviewed and a marked similarity of the patient's symptoms to those described by other authors was noted. This case differed in the length of exposure and the persistence of symptoms a year after exposure had ceased.