DEWAR - When a neighbor needed a handicapped accessible entryway, Creston Van Wey worked through the rain.

He knew he should take caution with the pressure treated lumber, so he wore gloves. But the 1-by-3-inch red and white warning tag stapled to the wood slipped by unnoticed.

Van Wey, 46, came home soaked, his fingers shriveled and pruney despite the gloves. He says the project went well.

A few days later Van Wey's hands swelled and turned red.

"My hands were real sensitive and sore. … It just got worse," he said.

He first thought the pain came from a change in job materials. He works as a welder at John Deere.

As time passed, though, his pain progressed. Jolts comparable to an electric shock passed through his hands and feet. By week six, he felt a pins-and-needles sensation when he tried to open doors. The same kind of sensitivity reached his feet.

After talking to people about his illness, Van Wey returned to the deck. Crawling underneath, he saw the small tag. In letters about the thickness of three eyelashes, he read: "CAUTION: ARSENIC IS IN THE PESTICIDE APPLIED TO THIS WOOD."

The tag also warned never to burn the wood, to wear a mask and goggles when cutting or sanding - and to wear gloves. In even smaller type, the list of safety precautions went on. It said nothing of working with the wood in the rain.

He went to the Web site printed on the tag, and after additional research, found his symptoms matched that of inorganic arsenic poisoning. He suspects he absorbed the chemical through his skin as his gloves absorbed water.

Most green-treated lumber manufactured before 2003 contains CCA, a form of arsenic used as an insecticide. The lumber industry agreed to stop producing that type of wood for consumer markets by December of that year, but leftover stocks can still be sold.

Most outdoor equipment found on playgrounds, picnic tables and decks may contain the toxin. The Environmental Protection Agency recommends sealing CCA wood each year to prevent arsenic from leaching.

Mary Kay, Van Wey's wife, said it was scary finding out something so toxic was allowed in playgrounds and back yards. Children crawl across decks, and others might set their food down on picnic tables, she reasoned.

"The arsenic doesn't go away. People need to be aware of it," she said.

But Donna Thompson, director of the National Program for Playground Safety, said exposure to arsenic in play equipment hasn't been a big problem in United States. She reiterated, though, people should seal arsenic-treated lumber.

According to the EPA Web site, inorganic arsenic penetrates pressure-treated wood deeply and remains for a long time. However, some of the chemical can migrate from the wood into surrounding soil over time. The substance can also be dislodged when people touch the wood.

People who want to get rid of the wood can throw it out in their regular trash collection, according to the EPA.

Theresa Stiner, environmental specialist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources energy and waste management bureau, said to take it a step further. She recommends turning the wood into a regional collection center, which collect a host of household hazardous materials.

Sending the wood to a landfill may become a hazard in time, she said. The materials could break down, releasing the arsenic into the groundwater, Stiner said.

The EPA reports arsenic exposure has been linked to cancer but ingesting a larger amount in a short time span causes poisoning like that which Van Wey apparently experienced.

Tracing the poison can be difficult. After a few days, the chemical will be absent from urine.

Van Wey wasn't tested for arsenic until September - five months after he was likely exposed. Doctors at first thought he may have carpel tunnel syndrome, which can have similar neurological symptoms.

The Van Weys wonder if more people are poisoned and never realize the cause of their ailments.

Doctors have only been able to diagnose the Van Wey's likely poisoning through a process of elimination. They can't tell him if his symptoms will go away.

"He has his good days and bad days," Mary Kay said.

That's not typical. She said her husband hadn't gotten sick once in the 11 years they've been married.

"To see him go through this, not being able to help him … ," she said.

"I see him tiptoe as he is walking. His feet hurt. He never complains," she said.

"I just don't know how you can go through life being electrocuted. There has to be some answers out there," Mary Kay said.

Van Wey said his hands feel like their being stuck with pins and his circulation seems poor. In the cold weather, he said his hands turn gray and white. Tremors go through his feet and hands.

Van Wey understand this type of poisoning is a rare occurrence. And his friend intends to keep the deck.

"I just want to get better," Van Wey said.