Correlates of Fitness for Duty in Hazardous Materials Firefighters

Details

• Personal Author:
  Dowdy JA ; Fedan, Jeffery S. ; Fedan, Kathleen B. ; Hubbs, Ann F.
• Description:
  Workers exposed by inhalation to volatile microwave popcorn butter flavorings experience decrements in lung function and develop bronchiolitis obliterans, i.e., "popcorn worker's lung." D, a major flavoring ingredient, is implicated in causing workers' symptoms. After inhalation exposure of rats, D caused necrosis of E in upper and lower airways. We investigated the hypothesis that D-induced damage to E alters airway reactivity by examining in the guinea-pig isolated, perfused trachea, its direct effects, and its effect on reactivity to MCh and terbutaline (T). Cumulative additions of D to the intraluminal (IL) bath resulted in responses that began with contraction and ended with relaxation, with a threshold of ca. 3 mM. After a 4-h incubation with IL applied D (3 mM), contractions to cumulative concentrations of MCh added to the extraluminal (EL) bath were increased; the EC50 was unaffected. However, sensitivity to IL-applied MCh was increased (EC50s [M] were, control: 3.4xl0^-4, D-treated: 3.0xl0^-5; p<0.05). D had no effect on maximum responses to MCh. Reactivity to ELapplied T in MCh (3x10^-7 M)-contracted tracheas was unaffected by D. These findings indicated that the increase in reactivity to IL MCh after D-treatment resulted from an alteration in E, e.g., a compromise in its barrier function and/or a decrease in the release of epithelium-derived relaxing factor. H&E sections of tracheas perfused (4 h) with D and not challenged with MCh or T demonstrated E degeneration or necrosis in 2 of 5 preparations; no changes were seen in vehicle controls or in the smooth muscle. These findings suggest that functional changes in reactivity may precede light microscopic evidence of pathologic changes after D-treatment. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Animals Inhalation Exposure Laboratories Lung Lung Diseases Methacholine Compounds Occupational Health Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety
• Keywords:
  Animal-studies In-vitro-studies Inhalants Inhalation-studies Laboratory-animals Lung-disorders Lung-function Methacholines Pulmonary-system-disorders Respiratory-system-disorders Worker-health Workers

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• ISSN:
  1546-3222
• Publisher:
  American Thoracic Society
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary ; Proceedings
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  HELD - Health Effects Laboratory Division ; DRDS - Division of Respiratory Disease Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20030105
• Citation:
  Proc Am Thorac Soc 2005 May; 2(Abstracts):A814
• Email:
  jsf2@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2005
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Proceedings of the American Thoracic Society. 2005 ATS International Conference, May 20-25, 2005, San Diego, California
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:925fc83c7befafe35b17ea82223295921585269313a293fece45d75ea71f3b4b4b459c02c8eb53dcced8afa252b2fa4784aaf8bb2533efd2d2a405ae540d85d5
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/190929/cdc_190929_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 460.87 KB ]