Tests Reveal Yushchenko's Dioxin Level

Viktor Yushchenko, originally uploaded by Mrs_Skeffington.

LONDON - New tests reveal the level of dioxin in the blood of Ukrainian presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko is more than 6,000 times higher than normal, according to the expert analyzing the samples.

The concentration, about 100,000 units per gram of blood fat, is the second highest ever recorded in human history, said Abraham Brouwer, professor of environmental toxicology at the Free University in Amsterdam, where blood samples taken last weekend in Vienna were sent for analysis.

A normal level of dioxin is between 15 and 45 units. Almost everyone has some level of dioxins because the toxic chemical is widespread in the environment — mainly from its industrial usages — and accumulates in the food chain.

In the case of Yushchenko, Brouwer's team has narrowed the search from more than 400 dioxins to about 29 and is confident they will identify the poison by week's end. That, in turn, could provide clues for the investigation of the alleged poisoning.

"From a (chemical) fingerprint, at least you can deduce what kind of sources might have been involved," Brouwer told The Associated Press. "The labs will ... try to find out whether it matches any of the batches of dioxins that are around, so that maybe you can trace it back to where it was ordered or where it came from."

Experts say Yushchenko, whose face has been pockmarked and disfigured, has probably experienced the worst effects already and should gradually recover, with no impairment to his working ability.

The reformist candidate, who faces Kremlin-backed Viktor Yanukovych in a repeat runoff on Dec. 26, first fell ill in September.

Dioxin: a potent threat to human health

PARIS - Just by looking at photographs of Ukrainian opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko, medical experts suspected dioxins were involved in the sudden change in his appearance, even before test results were released.

That hypothesis was confirmed by Yushchenko's doctor in Vienna, Michael Zimpfer, who said he found evidence of oral ingestion of dioxin, a chlorinated agent described by the World Health Organizations as a potent carcinogen.

Dioxins can also cause a number grave illnesses, including cardio-vascular diseases and destruction of the liver. But the most common -- and obvious -- symptom of dioxin poisoning is an extreme reaction of the skin to chlorine known as chloracne.

A dioxin called TCDD is medically recognized as being the most potent chemical known to produce the disfiguring and painful form of acne that appears to have afflicted Yushchenko. Chloracne can result from swallowing, inhaling or even touching the responsible agent.

TCDD is the chemical that was released in the 1976 industrial accident in Seveso, Italy. Twenty kilograms (45 pounds) of dioxins were released into the atmosphere, causing 193 cases of serious chloracne. The disaster was the highest known exposure of any population to dioxin and led to a radical shake-up of European environmental laws.

Most cases of dioxin poisoning today are caused by contact with chlorine compounds in occupational accidents.

Only infinitely small amounts of dioxin are needed to cause serious disease. Its extreme toxicity results from the fact that once inside the human cell, it is difficult to eradicate.

However, trace amounts of dioxin exist in the atmosphere and soil as the result of various industrial processes, and particularly waste incineration. Dioxin is also produced naturally in volcanic eruptions and forest fires.

Governments become seriously concerned when dioxin rises above the background level. A major food crisis was touched off in 1999 and the Belgian government fell when authorities tried to cover up dioxin contamination caused by cattle feed to which used motor oil had been added.

Because dioxin spreads through the food chain, virtually all poultry, dairy and meat products, and even Belgium's renowned chocolates, had to be taken out of markets around the world. The European Union imposed a complete ban on the export of many Belgian agricultural products until the crisis was over.

Only last month, Dutch health authorities closed two farms and cordoned off a wide area after abnormal levels of dioxin turned up in the milk from two dairy herds. The contamination was traced to potato peelings in the cattle feed that had been supplied by McCain, the world's largest manufacturer of frozen french fries. McCain said the potatoes had been contaminated by a kind of clay used in the manufacturing process.