Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-87-013-1803: West Seattle Community Hospital; Seattle, Washington

Details

• Personal Author:
  Daniels, William J. ; Gunter, Bobby J.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  In response to a request from an authorized representative of West Seattle Community Hospital (SIC-8062), Seattle, Washington, concerning exposure to waste anesthetic gases during surgical procedures, an evaluation was made in the operating rooms (ORs). Measurements were taken in three ORs, in the recovery room and in the OR reception area for nitrous-oxide (10024972) (N2O), ethrane (13838169), halothane (151677), and isoflurane (26675467). Measurements were also taken for ethylene-oxide (75218) (EtO). Of 15 samples taken and tested for NO2, five exceeding the NIOSH Recommended Exposure Limit of 25 parts per million (ppm). Isoflurane was found in all 12 personal and area air samples at concentrations from 0.09 to 1.96ppm. Ethrane was present in three of 12 samples at concentrations from 0.36 to 0.96ppm. Halothane was below the limit of detection. Isoflurane was detected in a personal sample from the recovery room and in the area sample from the OR reception area at concentrations of 0.69 and 0.65ppm, respectively. EtO levels ranged from 0.02 to 0.11ppm. The authors conclude that a hazard did exist specifically in relation to overexposures to N2O, ethrane, and isoflurane. The authors recommend inspection and maintenance of supply hoses and connections, inspection of the gas delivery system for wear and leakage, periodic air monitoring, informing employees of toxicological information relating to these chemicals, and inspection and possibly modification of the ventilation system.
• Subjects:
  • Anesthesia
  • Enflurane
  • Environmental Monitoring
  • Hospitals
  • Inhalation Exposure
  • Nitrous Oxide
  • Occupational Health
  • Safety
  • Ventilation
• Keywords:
  • NIOSH-Author
  • OSHA Region 10
  • HETA-87-013-1803
  • NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation
  • NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report
  • Hazard-Confirmed
  • Inhalants
  • Anesthesiology
  • Ventilation-systems
  • Air-quality-monitoring
  More +
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA870131803
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Washington ; OSHA Region 10
• 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:
  16 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  DiGiacomo, Marile F.
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00173102
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB88-125984
• 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 87-013-1803, 1987 Jun ; :1-17
• CAS Registry Number:
  • Ethrane (CAS RN 13838-16-9)
  • Ethylene oxide (CAS RN 75-21-8)
  • Halothane (CAS RN 151-67-7)
  • Isoflurane (CAS RN 26675-46-7)
  • Nitrous oxide (CAS RN 10024-97-2)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1987
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  8062 - General medical & surgical hospitals - (SIC)
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172087/cdc_172087_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 157.94 KB]
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:096dfcc1c93b61f9732fc4fa29854c806c63c84645e09f1066da01d13a06d7c2bedb0ee0de3253e2577266a0ddf455ef0204249cb3fb635db17fd54058ec540f