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Formaldehyde exposure, acute pulmonary response, and exposure control options in a gross anatomy laboratory
Author(s) -
AkbarKhanzadeh Farhang,
Vaquerano M. Ulises,
AkbarKhanzadeh Mahboubeh,
Bisesi Michael S.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.4700260106
Subject(s) - medicine , vital capacity , irritation , toxicology , formaldehyde , anesthesia , surgery , lung function , lung , chemistry , organic chemistry , diffusing capacity , immunology , biology
Formaldehyde exposure, acute pulmonary response, and exposure control options were evaluated in a group of 34 workers in a gross anatomy laboratory. Time‐weighted average (TWA) exposure to formaldehyde ranged from 0.07–2.94 parts per million (ppm) during dissecting operations. More than 94% were exposed to formaldehyde in excess of the ceiling value of 0.3 ppm recommended by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH). The eight‐hour TWA exposure of 31.7% of the subjects exceeded the action level of 0.5 ppm set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Reported symptoms included irritation of eye (88%), nose (74%), throat (29%), and airways (21%). Forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in 3 seconds (FEV 3 ) decreased, and FEV 1 /FVC increased during the exposure. The changes of FEV 3 were statistically different from those of the controls. The results strongly support the necessity for designing and testing special local exhaust‐ventilated worktables with necessary flexibility for dissecting operations.