Dimethylacetamide-induced toxic hepatitis in spandex workers: clinical presentation and treatment outcomes

Abstract

Background: Dimethylacetamide (DMAc) exposure has been associated with toxic hepatitis, and no clinical treatment has been reported.

Aim: To investigate the clinical manifestations of DMAc-induced symptoms and how to rescue the functional loss due to occupational exposure.

Design: Clinical observations of 60 spandex factory workers with the exposure to DMAc from January, 2017-19.

Methods: Chinese drugs (reduced glutathione, polyene phosphatidylcholine, glycyrrhizin compound, Hugan tablets and ornithine aspartate) were used to evaluate the therapeutic improvements in DMAc-exposed patients.

Results: Our data found that 58.3% patients had no distinct clinical symptoms, but 41.7% patients felt fatigue, and 21.7% patients suffered abdominal discomfort and appetite loss, and 8.3% patients had yellow skin and sclera. The ultrasonic and CT imaging revealed that some patients have fatty livers, intrahepatic calcifications, hepatomegaly, gallbladder wall edema and abdominal effusions. Biochemical analysis showed that the alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (P < 0.001), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (P < 0.001), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) (P < 0.001) and bilirubin (P < 0.01) statistically decreased after the drug treatment, but alkaline phosphatase (P >0.05) and glutamyl transpeptidase (P> 0.05) did not decrease. Twenty-nine out of the thirty-one patients' abnormal blood ammonia recovered. The risk factor of ALT on hospitalization time was significantly related (P < 0.01).

Conclusions: The drugs above are sufficient to rescue functional loss in DMAc-induced toxic hepatitis, in part via the regulations of ALT, AST, LDH, bilirubin and ammonia. Workers with the exposure to DMAc should receive specific drugs to maintain the health and prevent functional loss in the long term.