CNS EFFECTS OF EXPOSURE TO CHEMICAL TOXICANTS:  NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL AND IMAGING EVIDENCE

Roberta F. White, Ph.D., ABPP (CN)
Professor and Chair, Department of Environmental Health
Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

The universe of substances to which people can be exposed through occupational or environmental routes well exceeds 100,000 elements and compounds.  Some of these chemicals are known to be neurotoxic, though the neurotoxicity of most remains unknown.  This workshop will review the research methodologies commonly used to determine the neurotoxicity of industrial chemicals.   It will critically evaluate the methods that constitute the field of neurotoxicology and will specifically consider how epidemiologic data can and cannot be applied to understanding clinical symptomatology in patients with exposures to neurotoxicants.  Using case reports and case series data, the clinical manifestations of intoxication will be described for selected metals and gases. The participants in this workshop will be able to: (1) Name toxicants that are important clinically and with regard to public health, (2) Describe and critically evaluate research approaches to understanding the neurotoxicity of specific substances, and (3) List some of the clinical manifestations of neurointoxication due to exposure to industrial chemicals.