Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA 95-0294-2594: Scientific Application International Corporation, Frederick, Maryland

Details

• Personal Author:
  Hales, Thomas R. ; McGlothlin, James D. ; Hales, Thomas R. ; McGlothlin, James D.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health ; National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  In response to a request from management, an investigation was begun into cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs) among research technicians working in the In Vitro Cell Line Screening Project Laboratories of the Scientific Application International Corporation (SAIC), National Cancer Institute, and Frederick Cancer Research and Development Center (SIC-8731) located in Frederick, Maryland. Work in the drug preparation laboratory basically involves weighing and placing the compounds into test tubes and diluting the compounds into various concentrations. Approximately 36 to 40 drugs are prepared per day. All 43 lab employees completed the NIOSH questionnaire and 20 (47%) met the NIOSH case definition for potential work-related upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders. The hand was the area most commonly affected (40%) followed by the elbow (19%), shoulder (16%) and neck (14%). The laboratory hood was evaluated for ergonomic hazards, and several were identified. Since the evaluation, SAIC has developed a comprehensive ergonomics program which has reduced the biomechanical hazards in these labs and also reduced the number of CTD cases. However, there is still a risk for developing upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders among production laboratory employees. Engineering and administrative recommendations were made for improving pipetting operations, biosafety cabinet operation, cell plate preparation, and drug preparation
  
  for the use of antifatigue mats and adjustable height laboratory chairs
  
  and for ergonomically upgrading the computer and office equipment.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Cumulative Trauma Disorders Ergonomics Laboratories Musculoskeletal Diseases Musculoskeletal System Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Commercial Research Laboratories CTDs Cumulative Trauma Disorders Hazard-Confirmed HETA-95-0294-2594 Laboratory-workers Laboratory Workers Muscle-function Musculoskeletal-system-disorders Musculoskeletal Disorders NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report OSHA Region 3 Pipettes Posture

  More +
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)   ; Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)  
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA) ; Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA9502942594
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study ; Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Maryland ; OSHA Region 3
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) ; National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies ; DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health ; Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America ; North America
• Pages in Document:
  40 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Cho, Soo-Hun ; Johnson, Ova E. ; Mitchell, Kathleen
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00235007
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB97-147169
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 95-0294-2594, 1996 Aug ; :1-38
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1996
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  8731 - Commercial physical research - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:210c07d4c70b8b50ca512356bc55cd6eab76eb91158db501b98729c8936b5dca31045b1bd5bf58577ce1df7eff7c24952faa25645d68a3af02674ef38b7043d8
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/171164/cdc_171164_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.79 MB ]