Lawsuit Alleges Manganese Hit Nerves
June 15, 2006
A federal jury will determine whether manganese exposure from welding fumes causes serious neurological diseases like Parkinson’s in a court case filed by a former welder who suffers from nerve and movement problems.
This trial is the first of about 3,800 national lawsuits that have been combined in Cleveland federal court. Ernest G. Solis, 57, seeks unspecified damages from several welding rod manufacturers.
The major issue in the case that could set the standard for other suits is whether high exposure to manganese causes shaking, tremors, poor balance, and difficulty swallowing or walking—all signs and symptoms of Parkinson’s and other neurological disorders.
Manganese is a hazardous substance found in a number of products including tea, vitamin supplements, nuts and grains, and is also found in fumes from burning welding rods.
“A lot of people weld and there is manganese in welding rods. Manganese is very bad stuff at very high doses,” said Alan Ducatman, chairman of community medicine at the University of West Virginia.
According to Dr. Edward Baker, director of the North Carolina Institute for Public Health and professor at University of North Carolina, who testified at Solis’s trial, there has been extensive research linking manganese fumes from welding rods to neurological diseases.
However, other experts testified that there is yet to be a final conclusion on the effects of manganese fumes and Parkinson’s.
Currently, labels on welding rod packages warn that the fumes may be dangerous, although there is no distinct connection to neurological disorders. Furthermore, defendants claimed that workers in welding factories use equipment such as fans to blow fumes away or wear special breathing devices to protect them against high exposure to manganese.
“The problem is defining when doses are high enough to cause a neurological disease,” said Ducatman. “That’s what the research is all about.”
To learn more about manganese exposure from welding fumes, and other various side effects of manganese,please contact an attorney.
