Formaldehyde impairs memory, equilibrium, and dexterity in histology technicians: effects which persist for days after exposure.

Results of neurobehavioral testing in 305 histology technicians were studied by regression analysis with age, years of cigarette smoking, and hours per day of exposure to formaldehyde and to solvents as major independent variables. Increasing age was associated with poorer performance on visual memory, block design, trails, dexterity by pegboard, sharpened-Romberg, finger writing, as well as with longer choice reaction time. Increased daily hours of exposure to formaldehyde were correlated with reduced performance on story memory, visual memory, digit span, pegboard and sharpened-Romberg, as well as with errors on trails. Exposure to solvents was associated only with diminished recall of story.