However, no comparable data are available for humans. Several studies suggest that women who work in, or live near, metal smelters may have higher than normal spontaneous abortion rates, and their children may exhibit lower than normal birthweights. However, these studies are limited because they were designed to evaluate the effects of smelter pollutants in general, and are not specific for inorganic arsenic. Human studies have indicated higher than expected spontaneous abortion rates in women in the microelectronics industry who were exposed to arsine. However, these studies have several limitations, including small sample size and exposure to other chemicals in addition to arsine.
Inorganic arsenic can cross the placenta in humans, exposing the fetus to the chemical.
Oral animal studies have reported inorganic arsenic at very high doses to be fetotoxic and to cause birth defects. Human, inhalation studies have reported inorganic arsenic exposure to be strongly associated with lung cancer. EPA has not classified arsine for carcinogenicity. Pure inorganic arsenic is a gray-colored metal, but inorganic arsenic is usually found combined with other elements such as oxygen, chlorine, and sulfur. Until the 1940s, inorganic arsenic solutions were widely used in the treatment of various diseases, such as syphillis and psoriasis.