Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 
Case Studies in Environmental Medicine (CSEM) 
Tetrachloroethylene Toxicity
Assessment and Posttest Instructions

Introduction

ATSDR seeks feedback on this course so we can assess its usefulness and effectiveness. We ask you to complete the assessment questionnaire online for this purpose.

In addition, if you complete the Assessment and Posttest online, you can receive continuing education credits as follows:

Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME)

CME: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention designates this educational activity for a maximum of 1.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), Commission on Accreditation

CNE: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is accredited as a provider of Continuing Nursing Education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation. This activity provides 1.25 contact hours.

National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, Inc. (NCHEC)

CHES: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is a designated provider of continuing education contact hours (CECH) in health education by the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, Inc. This program is a designated event for the Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) to receive 1.25 Category I contact hours in health education, CDC provider number GA0082.

International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET)

CEU: The CDC has been approved as an Authorized Provider by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET), 1760 Old Meadow Road, Suite 500, McLean, VA 22102. The CDC is authorized by IACET to offer 0.1 IACET CEU's for this program.

Disclaimer

CDC, our planners, and our presenters wish to disclose they have no financial interests or other relationships with the manufacturers of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services, or commercial supporters. Presentations will not include any discussion of the unlabeled use of a product or a product under investigational use. There was no commercial support received for this activity.

Online Instructions

To complete the Assessment and Posttest, go to Training and Continuing Education Online and follow the instructions on that page. You can immediately print your continuing education certificate from your personal transcript online. No fees are charged.

Posttest

1. Which of the following products contain tetrachloroethylene?
   1. shoe polish
   2. laundry soaps
   3. spot removers
   4. insect repellents.
2. People can be exposed to tetrachloroethylene from
   1. environmental sources
   2. consumer products
   3. occupational sources
   4. All of the above.
3. The exposure pathway to tetrachloroethylene that most commonly leads to illness is through
   1. ingestion
   2. dermal contact
   3. inhalation
   4. All are equally important.
4. All of the following persons have an increased likelihood of tetrachloroethylene exposure except?
   1. machinists and metal degreasers
   2. dry-cleaning workers
   3. breast-fed infants of exposed mothers
   4. tree sprayers.
5. NIOSH considers tetrachloroethylene a potential carcinogen and recommends exposure in the workplace be reduced to
   1. 25 ppm
   2. 100 ppm
   3. 50 ppm
   4. the lowest possible level.
6. Which of the following statement(s) about tetrachloroethylene is (are) true?
   1. it is well absorbed from the lungs
   2. an ingested dose can result in gangrene
   3. most of an absorbed dose is metabolized in the liver
   4. most of an inhaled dose is eliminated in urine.
7. Renal failure after acute tetrachloroethylene exposure is probably
   1. caused by an excess of hydrogen chloride resulting from the solvent's metabolism
   2. caused by a rise in urobilinogen
   3. a result of vascular collapse after CNS depression
   4. associated with generation of reactive metabolites selectively in the kidney.
8. CNS effects due to tetrachloroethylene include all of the following except
   1. can occur in the absence of liver toxicity
   2. are enhanced in a person exposed to tetrachloroethylene while exercising
   3. are due to trichloroacetic acid, a major metabolite of tetrachloroethylene
   4. can result in a positive Romberg test at high exposure levels.
9. Which one of the following is CNS effect of chronic inhalation exposure to tetrachloroethylene?
   1. paranoid psychosis
   2. dysesthesia
   3. disorientation
   4. tactile hallucinations.
10. Patients with acute tetrachloroethylene poisoning can have all of the following except
    1. slurred speech
    2. jaundice
    3. memory deficit
    4. upper respiratory irritation.
11. To measure tetrachloroethylene in blood or expired air after exposure, samples should be collected within
    1. 1 hour
    2. 6 hours
    3. 16 hours
    4. 24 hours.
12. Treatment(s) for acute inhalation of tetrachloroethylene include(s)
    1. oxygen
    2. activated charcoal
    3. emesis
    4. ethanol administered intravenously

Relevant Content

What is tetrachloroethylene?

Where is tetrachloroethylene found?

What are routes of exposure for tetrachloroethylene?

Who is at risk of tetrachloroethylene exposure?

What are standards for tetrachloroethylene exposure?

What is the biological fate of tetrachloroethylene in the body?

What is the biological fate of tetrachloroethylene in the body?

What are the physiological effects of tetrachloroethylene exposure?

What are the physiological effects of tetrachloroethylene exposure?

Clinical assessment – history and signs and symptoms

Clinical assessment – laboratory tests

How should patients exposed to tetrachloroethylene be treated and managed?