THREE CASES OF THINNER-SNIFFING AND ESTIMATING THE FATAL CONCENTRATION OF TOLUENE BY TOXICOKINETICS

To determine the potentially lethal level of thinner concentration in the air, we measured the concentration of toluene in the blood and other media of three patients who suffered sever acute thinner intoxication between 4 January 1996 and 21 April 1977 in Ube city. The concentration of toluene in blood were 30.2 mg/l in dead patient, and 13.7 mg/l and 17.5 mg/l in recovered patients, respectively. By extrapolation from the results of our previous toxicokinetic reseach on toluene poisoning in anesthetized dogs, the fatal concentration of toluene was estimated to be approximately 1800 to 2000 ppm over a one-hour exposure.

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