Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-82-089-1213: Immunology Branch Laboratory Centers for Disease Control; Atlanta, Georgia

Details

• Personal Author:
  Berry, Roland J. ; Salisbury, Stanley A.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Hazardous exposures among workers at the Immunology Branch (IB), Centers for Disease Control (SIC-8922) (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia were investigated on January 5 and April 12 to 15, 1982. The evaluation was requested by the Chief, Birth Defects Branch, CDC, following five spontaneous abortions among seven IB workers during an 8-month period. Work procedures and hygiene practices were evaluated. Workplace air samples were collected for analysis, and urine samples were taken from IB workers for evaluation. All female workers and spouses of male workers were questioned about attempts at conception and pregnancy outcomes. Of the more than 180 chemicals used at the workplace, 39 were identified as known mutagens, teratogens, or embryotoxins. Sampling for sodium-azide (26628228), 2-mercaptoethanol (60242), dimethyl-sulfoxide (67685), and phenols did not reveal significant concentrations. Workplace ventilation was good. Compared to life table data, the five miscarriages among the workers represented a relative risk of 3.9. The authors conclude that the high spontaneous abortion rate does not appear related to a specific workplace hazard. It may represent a natural occurrence. The authors recommend ventilation and careful work practices. The reproductive health of the IB workers and their spouses should be monitored.
• Subjects:
  Laboratories Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Safety Urogenital Diseases Urogenital System
• Keywords:
  2-Mercaptoethanol, CAS 60-24-2 DMSO, CAS 67-68-5 Hazards-Unconfirmed HETA-82-089-1213 Laboratory-workers Laboratory Workers Long-term-exposure Miscarriage NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Noncommercial, Educational, Scientific, And Research Organizations O-Phenylphenol, CAS 90-43-7 Occupational-exposure OSHA Region 4 P-Tert-Amylphenol, CAS 80-46-6 Phenolic Detergents Reproductive-hazards Sodium Azide, CAS 26628-22-8 Spontaneous Abortions

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA820891213
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Georgia ; 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:
  28 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00127363
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB84-172535
• 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 82-089-1213, 1982 Nov ; :1-25
• CAS Registry Number:
  p-tert-Amylphenol (CAS RN 80-46-6) ; Sodium azide (CAS RN 26628-22-8) ; 2-Mercaptoethanol (CAS RN 60-24-2) ; Dimethyl sulphoxide (CAS RN 67-68-5)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1983
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  8922 - Noncommercial Research Organizations - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:844caf14039fab41c5e64d03bc15114efd042b776b7600cb66a9c452e51d28e514044a7f960bd378897a9a7aa2bbe7b4e8bd2739f84f44509d4f7dad731ea4c2
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/173112/cdc_173112_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 4.45 MB ]