Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-87-042-1869: Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services; Jacksonville, Florida

Details

• Personal Author:
  Mathias, C. G. ; Ornella, Gregory A.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  In response to a request from the State of Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services (SIC-8071), Jacksonville, Florida, an evaluation was made of working conditions at public health laboratories to investigate outbreaks of red rashes, dryness and chapping of skin among employees. Five of the seven public health laboratories were visited, and the workers questioned concerning their experiences and their job duties. Exposure to the oxidase reagents used in the preliminary identification of Neisseria- gonorrhoeae cultures was reported by 54 of 99 workers completing a questionnaire. Of these 54 workers, 34 were experiencing the skin problems. In skin patch tests using oxidase reagents, seven of 27 individuals tested positive for allergic contact dermatitis to oxidase reagents. A relationship was also noted between those who were non-sensitized victims of dermatitis and the degree of exposure they had to the oxidase reagents. The authors conclude that there is a health hazard from exposure to oxidase compounds at these public health laboratories. The authors recommend that more extensive patch testing be carried out and those workers testing positive be transferred to other areas of the facility. Those workers who are not sensitive should wear disposable vinyl gloves when working with oxidase reagents. Work practices should be changed to minimize accidental spillage.
• Subjects:
  Dermatitis Hypersensitivity Laboratories Occupational Health Safety Skin Skin Diseases
• Keywords:
  1,4-diaminobenzene Allergic-reactions Allergic Contact Dermatitis Hazard-Confirmed HETA-87-042-1869 Laboratory-workers N,N,N',N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine Dihydrochloride N,N-dimethyl-p-phenylenediamine N,N-dimethyl-p-phenylenediamine Dihydrochloride N,N-dimethyl-p-phenylenediamine Monohydrochloride NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Occupational-dermatitis OSHA Region 4 Oxidase P-aminodimethylaniline Oxalate P-diaminobenzene P-phenylenediamine Skin-exposure Skin Rash Ursol

  More +
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA870421869
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Florida ; 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:
  36 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  McGraw, Patricia C.
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00179852
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB88-221593
• 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 87-042-1869, 1988 Feb ; :1-44
• CAS Registry Number:
  p-Phenylenediamine (CAS RN 106-50-3) ; 1,4-Benzenediamine, N1,N1-dimethyl-, ethanedioate (1:1) (CAS RN 24631-29-6) ; 1,4-Benzenediamine, N1,N1-dimethyl-, hydrochloride (1:1) (CAS RN 2052-46-2) ; N,N-Dimethyl-p-phenylenediamine dihydrochloride (CAS RN 536-46-9) ; Tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine dihydrochloride (CAS RN 637-01-4)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1988
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  8071 - Medical laboratories - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:aca4745cd10de72cc4c9dba693bb145a6aab17321ab9979d1d8a2941cccbb67e556cdc6fdeb33d229e9d63759ee29b4cb1e31cfe43334f4312e1143d89748446
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/171943/cdc_171943_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 204.06 KB ]