Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-88-156-1984: Georgia Gulf Corporation; Tiptonville, Tennessee

Details

• Personal Author:
  Calvert, Geoffrey M. ; Mathias, C. G.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  In response to a request from the Georgia Gulf Corporation (SIC- 3079), Tiptonville, Tennessee, an investigation was made of an outbreak of dermatitis at this facility. The facility produced polyvinyl-chloride (9002862) compound by blending polyvinyl-chloride resin with other ingredients. Rashes were reported by 22 production workers and three clerical or management workers. Examination of seven of the workers indicated that all of them appeared to have contact dermatitis. Rashes were found in areas of the body where powders may come in contact with the body, and the rashes improved when away from work. Blender operators had a significantly elevated risk of developing dermatitis compared with production workers who had lower exposures to dusts and powders. The authors conclude that the dermatitis was probably of occupational origin, due to exposure to airborne pigment powders and acrylic polymers containing residual monomers. The authors recommend measures to reduce exposures and prevent dermatitis, including showering at the end of a work shift that involved exposure to dusts and powders, reduction of airborne dust levels through engineering controls, and the use of protective clothing, barrier creams, and skin moisturizers.
• Subjects:
  Dermatitis Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Plastics Safety Skin
• Keywords:
  Acrylic Polymers And Monomers Calcium Carbonate Carbon Black Contact-dermatitis Dermatitis Hazard-Confirmed HETA-88-156-1984 Miscellaneous Plastic Products NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Occupational-exposure OSHA Region 4 Pigment Powders Plastics-industry Polyvinyl Chloride Compounding Skin-exposure Skin-protection Titanium Dioxide

  More +
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA881561984
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Tennessee ; OSHA Region 4
• 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:
  25 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Tolbert, Julie
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00192794
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB90-161852
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 88-156-1984, 1989 Aug ; :1-24
• CAS Registry Number:
  Polyvinyl Chloride (CAS RN 9002-86-2)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1989
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  3079 - Miscellaneous Plastics Products - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:c4c45014bcbdf50a7de6a7aa1a08f483abfa0d1847a83cc65cbce33276f2f0945c19cda3c91aea31f5fa8caca6571637148557e1648e40163c7fa336907a915c
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/171803/cdc_171803_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 856.53 KB ]