Welding Rod Trade Organizations Admitted Possible Parkinson's Link, Complaint Alleges

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Welding rod manufacturers were aware that experts were exploring the possibility that manganese fumes were causing illnesses similar to Parkinson's disease, a new complaint filed in Alabama alleges. Davis, et al., v. Lincoln Electric, et al., No. 04-CV-404 (N.D. Ala.).

The complaint was filed Feb. 27 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama and alleges that in 1984, the American Welding Society Safety and Health Committee admitted that as few as six months of exposure to welding rod fumes can cause a disease similar to Parkinson's disease.

'Through industry and medical studies, …