Metal fume fever: A case review of calls made to the Victorian Poisons Information Centre

Abstract

Objective: To determine the epidemiology of metal fume fever over an extended period in Victoria, Australia. Methods: A retrospective case review of all metal fume fever related calls to the Victorian Poisons Information Centre. Specific defined criteria were used to identify cases of metal fume fever and a set of data points extracted for each. Results: Eighty-four (99%) of the cases involved adults. Fifty-three percent of exposures occurred in the workplace. The most frequent day of symptom manifestation was Monday (24%). All of the calls concerned people involved in welding metal with subsequent inhalation of fumes. Discussion: Calls were most common at the beginning of the week, reflecti..