Medical News Today reported on a piece in Neurology (subscription required) in which researchers conducted memory studies on retired French workers who had been exposed to solvents during their working years. The specific solvents included benzene, chlorinated solvents, and petroleum solvents. The retirees had been out of work for an average of 10 years and the average age of study participants was 66. The results demonstrated that only 18% of the persons tested had no memory impairment. This statistic is more troubling in context: only 16% of the persons tested had no exposure to solvents. Another troubling aspect of the study is that it found that persons with high but distant solvent exposure (31-50 years prior to testing) still demonstrated measurable cognitive deficits.
While it would be too early to draw definitive conclusions from the report, it seems likely that the findings will prompt further investigation. If subsequent studies confirm the researchers’ conclusions, it certainly could prompt claims by those exposed to the offending solvents through their employment. This is significant because chlorinated solvents and petroleum solvents are found in such common items as cleaners, degreasers, and paint. Exposure to these products is regulated, but if new information becomes available that demonstrates the level of exposure that causes harm is lower than previously thought then employees in such occupations as commercial housekeeping and painting who suffer cognitive decline that would have been attributed to other factors may now connect the cognitive decline to solvent exposure on the job. Obviously the effect on worker’s compensation claims would be significant as would the likely third party claims against the manufacturers of the solvents.
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