potassium-permanganate and Polyneuropathies

Manganese intoxication is an unusual, severe form of intoxication. This report deals with a patient now 80 years old who accidentally ingested a solution of potassium permanganate for a period of at least 4 weeks 14 years ago. Since then, the patient suffers from a mild parkinsonian syndrome and distally accentuated polyneuropathies. Psychiatric disorders, especially demential or depressive symptoms, were not observed. Manganese analysis of his hair still shows a clear increase in manganese concentration. The MRI of his brain showed no pathological changes, in particular none of those often described with symmetric signal elevation in T1 in the area of the basal ganglia. In this study, we present clinical, laboratory, and neuroradiological findings. Unusual in this case with a short exposition is the long duration and clinical improvement without L-dopa treatment.

Topics: Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Brain; Humans; Levodopa; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Manganese Poisoning; Parkinson Disease, Secondary; Polyneuropathies; Potassium Permanganate; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Remission, Spontaneous