Section revised June 28, 2005 to include recently obtained information.

As most readers know, chloracne is one of the few diseases that Dow Chemical attributes to dioxin exposure. 

Chloracne was first described in 1897 and was originally thought to be caused by exposure to newly formed chlorine... hence the name "chloracne".  With time, chloracne was recognized as being caused by over-exposure to chlorinated aromatic hydrocarbons, such as dioxins and furans.  TCDD is medically recognized as being the most potent chemical to produce the chloroacnegenic response.

Dow has conducted several mortality studies of its workers that contracted chloracne as the result of dioxin exposure.  However, Dow has never really disclosed the full details of the "chloracne incident" that occurred at the Midland plant during the 1964 to 1966 time period that resulted in more than 295 new cases of chloracne at the Midland plant.

What is so very unusual is Dow's over-reaction to employee exposure from a chemical impurity that the company still claims only causes a mild to severe form of acne.

A reasonable account of "Dow's Chloracne Incident" has been compiled from several sources and personal experience.

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