Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-84-221-1523: Pennsylvania Hospital; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Details

• Personal Author:
  Aw, Tar-Ching ; Stephenson, Richard L.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Area and breathing zone samples were analyzed for monomeric isocyanates, total reactive isocyanate group (TRIG) compounds, and organic solvents at Pennsylvania Hospital (SIC-1542, SIC-1799), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in March, 1984. The survey was requested by a construction union to evaluate employee exposures to isocyanates during floor waterproofing operations. Medical questionnaires were administered to eight workers. Pulmonary function tests were conducted on the workers. Urine samples from five workers were analyzed for methylhippuric-acid (2198643). TRIG concentrations ranged from 48.9 to 192 micrograms per cubic meter. There is no current Federal standard for TRIG. Monomeric isocyanates were not detected. Only trace amounts of xylene (1330207) and toluene (108883) were found. One worker who had a previous history of isocyanates exposure had a significant pre to post shift decrease in 1 second forced expiratory volume (FEV1) and FEV1/forced vital capacity ratio. He had symptoms of chest tightness, nausea, cough, lightheadedness, and dizziness. Five other workers reported similar symptoms. One worker had a small amount of urinary methylhippuric-acid, indicative of systemic absorption of toluene. The authors conclude that the workers have been exposed to isocyanates. Recommendations include using respirators and following the medical recommendations outlined in the NIOSH diisocyanate criteria document.
• Subjects:
  Air Pollutants, Occupational Air Pollution, Indoor Construction Industry Environmental Monitoring Hospitals Isocyanates Occupational Health Polyurethanes Safety Solvents Toluene

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• Keywords:
  Air-contamination Air-monitoring Air-samples Construction-Search General Contractors: Hospital Construction) Hazards-Confirmed HETA-84-221-1523 Hospital-equipment MDI NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Organic Solvents OSHA Region 3 PAPI Roofers Special Trade Contractors [Waterproofing] TDI Total Isocyanates

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA842211523
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Pennsylvania ; 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:
  21 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Zey, John N. ; Owen, Susan ; Hale, Dorriss Q. ; Catlett, Larry ; Phipps, Frederick ; Slick, Edward J.
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00144831
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB85-208247
• 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 84-221-1523, 1984 Nov ; :1-19
• CAS Registry Number:
  N-Benzoyl-L-alanine (CAS RN 2198-64-3) ; Xylene (CAS RN 1330-20-7) ; Toluene (CAS RN 108-88-3)
• Editor(s):
  Jolliffe, Lynette K.
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1985
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  1542 - Nonresidential construction, not elsewhere classified - (SIC) ; 1799 - Special trade contractors, not elsewhere classified - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:50425d91f86f16d22b6f392dce19f970fc4d903eb82dd68a0b6cae8649efcf26436a15457cf63a5bf1f74a5a13415bf6a8998b45052d1d007081c9487932a580
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172764/cdc_172764_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 6.20 MB ]