A case of acute psychosis in a patient following exposure to a single high dose of styrene.

Abstract

We report a case of acute psychotic symptoms following exposure to a single high dose of styrene monomer. The 24-year-old male patient showed psychotic and cognitive symptoms immediately after exposure. His psychotic symptoms included auditory hallucinations and delusions of reference. Brain magnetic resonance imaging, electroencephalography, and laboratory examinations were performed to evaluate any other causes. The clinical, neuroimaging, and laboratory review in this case suggested that the suddenly developed psychotic symptoms that led to chronic deterioration were caused by the single exposure to styrene monomer. This is the first recent report in which acute psychotic symptoms developed from a single high dose of styrene suffocation compared with previous findings showing symptoms because of long-term low-dose exposure.