Capillary abnormalities in polyvinyl chloride production workers. Examination by in vivo microscopy
H. R. Maricq, M. N. Johnson, C. L. Whetstone and E. C. LeRoy
Examination by wide-field capillary microscopy of the hands of 152 workers
in vinyl chloride (VC) polymerization plants demonstrated scattered,
scleroderma-like microvascular abnormalities in 21 workers and isolated
capillary abnormalities in 27, as compared with only three isolated
abnormalities in 50 manual workers not exposed to vinyl chloride. Thirteen
of 17 VC workers with objective evidence of VC-associated abnormalities
(angiosarcoma or fibrosis of liver, acroosteolysis, or scleroderma-like
skin lesions) were observed to have microvascular abnormalities. If
prospective studies confirm the implications of this study, capillary
microscopy may become a useful mass-screening procedure in the early
detection and prevention of VC-associated disease.
