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Manganese Toxicity
Do I have a Manganese toxicity poisoning case?
What is Manganese poisoning? What is Manganese toxicity
What is the problem that causes Manganese toxicity?
Who is responsible for Manganese toxicity?
Manganese Poisoning Topic Library
What is
being done about manganese toxicity?
What can you do about Manganese toxicity?
Do I have a Manganese toxicity case?
FAQs
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Manganese
Poisoning from Welding Rods and the Environment
Welders and others who work or live near construction sites
or in industrial areas may be at a greater risk of developing
Manganese poisoning or Manganese toxicity, a neurological
disorder that closely resembles Parkinson's disease. Links
have been made between welding rods, Manganese toxicity,
and Manganese poisoning. Studies on welders using welding
rods that contain Manganese indicates that there may be
a strong link between fumes and dust released while welding
and a series of serious injuries and deaths among welders
and others exposed to those fumes. Among the groups who
are at the greatest risk for Manganese toxicity and Manganese
poisoning include welders, railroad workers, miners, and
steel workers. Manganese is also present in some pesticides,
such as maneb or mancozeb, and in methylcyclopentadienyl
Manganese tricarbonyl (MMT), a fuel additive in some gasolines.
Fumes released when Manganese is burned contain several
chemicals, including manganese, fluorine, zinc, lead, arsenic,
calcium, sulfur, chrome, and nickel. In addition, these
fumes also contain the gases carbon monoxide (CO), carbon
dioxide (COČ), various nitrogen oxides (NO, NOČ, and others),
and ozone. Each of these chemicals has the potential to
harm the body. Of these, Manganese is especially toxic.
Medical studies of people who have been exposed to Manganese
indicate that "Abnormal and toxic concentrations of
Manganese in the brain, especially in the basal ganglia,
are associated with neurological disorders similar to Parkinson's
disease" (Takeda, 2003) Exposure to high levels of
manganese, such as those inhaled by a welder, are known
to be harmful to the central nervous system. Manganese poisoning
and Manganese toxicity may develop with as little as three
months exposure. Symptoms of Manganese neurotoxicity include
a shuffling gait, slack facial muscles, speech difficulties
(including slurred speech), depression, and general psychological
imbalance. A recent clinical study of welders exposed to
Manganese found that welders who had developed Parkinson's
disease typically began showing symptoms 15 years earlier
than typical Parkinson's patients. Doctors are still researching
this possible link between welding, manganese, and Parkinson's
disease.
Other research has also linked Manganese to serious complications.
A Canadian research team found that "chronic exposure
to Manganese leads to selective dopaminergic dysfunction,
neuronal loss, and gliosis in basal ganglia structures together
with characteristic astrocytic changes known as Alzheimer
type II astrocytosis (Normandin, 2002)
The risk for Manganese poisoning has been well established.
However, these risks of Manganese toxicity have been ignored
by the manufacturers of welding rods. We invite you to read
the rest of this special report to learn more about the
dangers of Manganese exposure, Manganese toxicity and how
you can be compensated for any injuries you may have suffered
as a result of Manganese toxicity.
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