Encephalopathy and Neuropathy due to Glue, Paint Thinner, and Gasoline Sniffing in Trinidad and Tobago-MRI Findings. (18th June 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Ramcharan, Kanterpersad; Ramesar, Amrit; Ramdath, Moshanti; Teelucksingh, Joel; Gosein, Maria
• Other Names: Koide Reiji Academic Editor.
• Is Part Of: Case reports in neurological medicine. Volume 2014(2014)
• Publication Date: 2014-06-18
• Subjects: Neurology -- Periodicals; Nervous system -- Diseases -- Periodicals; Neurology; Nervous System Diseases; Nervous system -- Diseases; Neurology; Electronic journals; Periodicals; Periodicals; 616.8
• DOI: 10.1155/2014/850109
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2090-6676

Abstract

Abstract : A 29-year-old male petrol station pump attendant was admitted with ataxia and clinical evidence of a sensorimotor polyneuropathy which developed over the preceding 3 months. He had cognitive dysfunction, hearing loss, and cerebellar clinical abnormalities that came on slowly over the three years. He had a fifteen-year history of sniffing mostly glue, occasionally paint thinners, and, in the recent two years, gasoline. Magnetic resonance brain imaging showed abnormalities of the cerebral cortex, cerebral white matter, corpus callosum, hippocampus, brainstem and cerebellar atrophy, hypointensities of basal ganglia, red nuclei, and substantia nigra as previously described in toluene sniffing. Abstinence for six months led to partial clinical improvement. Clinicians need to be aware of this preventable entity which has peculiar radiological findings which are being increasingly accepted as typical.