Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-87-207-1845: University of Colorado, Health Sciences Center; Denver, Colorado

Details

• Personal Author:
  Gunter, Bobby J. ; Hales, Thomas R. ; Nichting, Anne T.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  In response to a request from management of University Hospital, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center (SIC-8062) located at Denver, Colorado, a study of possible employee exposure to ethylene- oxide (75218) was undertaken. Employees had complained of headaches and possible neurological problems. A personal breathing zone sample collected from the sterilizer operator showed levels of ethylene-oxide at the limit of quantitation, 0.02mg/m3. In sterilizer and mechanical access room samples, ethylene-oxide was detected ranging up to 0.2mg/m3 levels. A stationary, solid-state alarm in a storage area adjacent to the sterilizer room which had been going off with some regularity may have been responding to hairspray or to a bar of isopropanol-based soap nearby. The authors conclude that a potential for exposure to ethylene-oxide exists for workers in the sterilizer room. The authors recommend that efforts be continued to keep ethylene-oxide levels as low as possible and to check for possible leaks in the system. Effective ventilation controls should be established, and a warning system should be installed in the mechanical access room. Respirators, protective clothing, training for employees, safety meetings, and medical evaluations for personnel were all included in the recommendations following the investigation.
• Subjects:
  Health Personnel Hospitals Laboratories Nervous System Diseases Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Ethylene Oxide Gas Sterilization Hazard-Confirmed Health-care-personnel HETA-87-207-1845 Hospital-equipment Hospitals Laboratory-workers Nervous-system-disorders NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report OSHA Region 8

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA872071845
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; OSHA Region 8
• 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:
  DiGiacomo, Marile
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00178071
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB88-202809
• 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 87-207-1845, 1987 Oct ; :1-31
• CAS Registry Number:
  Ethylene oxide (CAS RN 75-21-8)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1988
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  8062 - General medical & surgical hospitals - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:6631afd4d93a60fc63b7899a8990f1b660643b13d885bf42ad37252690aa8d89fb38f2f383f5776380badb5f46367bbdf7fc18fac6ceea858903a437b302d64b
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172031/cdc_172031_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 172.87 KB ]