Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-90-140-2221: George Washington University Medical Center; Washington, D.C.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Deitchman, Scott D. ; Seitz, Teresa A.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Exposure during aerosolized pentamidine administration was investigated in response to concerns raised by a published report about pulmonary diffusing capacity in a health care worker and diagnosis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis in a worker administering pentamidine (100334) at the George Washington University Medical Center (SIC-8069) in Washington, DC. Pentamidine has been used in the treatment of protozoal diseases, particularly Pneumocystis- carinii pneumonia, an opportunistic infection in patients with compromised immune function. Environmental measurements indicated a pentamidine concentration of 0.04 micrograms/cubic meter in a personal breathing zone air sample for a nurse involved in administering the medication, and 0.09 and 0.13 micrograms/cubic meter in area air samples outside the treatment room. Of four employees interviewed, two expressed occasional symptoms of mild chest tightness associated with exposure to the medication. The authors conclude that the recognized irritant effects of pentamidine, its potential to cause bronchospasm, and the risk of tuberculosis transmission in these settings justify continued efforts to minimize worker exposure.
• Subjects:
  Biopharmaceutics Health Personnel Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Aerosolized Pentamidine AIdahoS Hazard-Confirmed Health-care-personnel Health Care Workers HETA-90-140-2221 Hospitals, Specialty Medical-treatment NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Occupational-exposure OSHA Region 3 Pentamidine Pentamidine Isethionate Pharmaceuticals Pneumocystis Carinii Pneumonia Tuberculosis

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA901402221
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  District of Columbia ; OSHA Region 3
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  14 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00209043
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB92-231034
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, Ohio: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 90-140-2221, 1992 May ; :1-17
• CAS Registry Number:
  Pentamidine (CAS RN 100-33-4)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1992
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  8069 - Specialty hospitals except psychiatric - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:64bd595b02e6036a8b18d2b7d9922b7d57de7b6e4b48f6c1f4f894d0c57eca6dc027b0dd39d597cff86eb037855c9650d49817253e1c0e2f3e35fcf1506a7d3c
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/171564/cdc_171564_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 168.75 KB ]