Unintentional Carbon Monoxide Poisoning from an Unlikely Source

Details

• Personal Author:
  Goldstein LA ; Prince TS ; Scheerer A ; Struttmann, Timothy
• Description:
  Carbon monoxide poisoning is an occupational health risk across a broad range of industries and vocations (eg, firefighters, tollbooth operators, miners, mechanics). In 1995 Carbon monoxide poisoning was the cause of 42 occupational fatalities in the United States. In 1993, 862 nonfatal cases of carbon monoxide poisoning resulted in days away from work. The manufacturing and retail trade industries accounted for the largest percentage of carbon monoxide poisonings (27.3 percent and 24.2 percent, respectively); the agriculture-forestry-fishing industry accounted for 3.1 percent. Although these values appear to represent carbon monoxide poisoning at work as a rare event, the percentages are highly conservative. The symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning are nonspecific, and many nonfatal cases of carbon monoxide exposure go undetected. It has been estimated that one third of all carbon monoxide poisonings are undiagnosed. This report documents an unusual case of carbon monoxide poisoning in that the incident occurred outdoors while a farmer was setting tobacco plants on a family farm. An extensive review of the literature found no cases of carbon monoxide poisoning from tractor exhaust in an open field. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Agriculture Air Pollutants, Occupational Farmers Fuel Oils Morbidity Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Agricultural-chemicals Agricultural-machinery Agricultural-workers Emission-sources Fuels Fumes Morbidity-rates Occupational-exposure Poison-gases Statistical-analysis Tractors

  More +
• ISSN:
  1557-2625
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Kentucky ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  481-484
• Volume:
  11
• Issue:
  6
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20033521
• Citation:
  J Am Board Fam Med 1998 Nov-Dec; 11(6):481-484
• CAS Registry Number:
  Carbon monoxide (CAS RN 630-08-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1999
• Performing Organization:
  Kentucky Department of Health Services
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  1141 - Fishing - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  19930930
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine
• End Date:
  20060831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:49e355bbc451d24a4453d4755e2f3250c76a42c3b451c6e855e111ccb94536360d062af874c3cfeccc2503c6cbe7150a6bf2c927e4ce4d55e6bb712703fd797e
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/189059/cdc_189059_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 729.99 KB ]