• Shojiro Ichimata, Yukiko Hata, Ryosuke Zaimoku, and Naoki Nishida.
• Department of Legal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.
• Medicine (Baltimore). 2023 Mar 31; 102 (13): e33395e33395.

IntroductionThe main mechanism of death and the pathological appearance of cases of benzyl alcohol intoxication has not been fully investigated. Autopsy reports of cases of benzyl alcohol intoxication have not been published.Case PresentationA 24-year-old man was found in the state of cardiopulmonary arrest at a construction site. He had been performing paint stripping. He was immediately transferred to the hospital, but he did not recover. An autopsy showed focal coloring of the skin without any major caustic injury. A histopathological investigation showed vacuolar degeneration in the epidermis and dermo-epidermal junction, and severe erosion of the tracheal and bronchial mucosa. No pathological changes in the kidney were evident. A neuropathological investigation showed central chromatolysis of neuronal cells in pontine nuclei and grumose degeneration in the cerebellar dentate nucleus. The blood content of benzyl alcohol was 780.0 μg/mL.LessonsPresent case suggest that multiple pathways of exposure may be associated with more rapid progression in acute benzyl alcohol intoxication, and that early and/or severe involvement of the central nervous system rather than renal dysfunction may be associated with an early death.Copyright © 2023 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.

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