Pulmonary responses following inhalation of sand dust collected from hydraulic fracturing operations

Details

• Personal Author:
  Cumpston AM ; Farris BY ; Fedan, Jeffery S. ; Jackson MC ; McKinney W ; Roberts, Jennifer R. ; Russ KA ; Thompson JA
• Description:
  Workers at gas well fracking operations are exposed to fine fracking sand dust (FSD) which is generated from the movement of sand as it is prepared for injection into the well as a proppant. The worker exposures to FSD have been reported to exceed the exposure limits for crystalline silica promulgated by OSHA, NIOSH and ACGIH. Characterization of the FSD indicated that 88% of the particles were ≤ 2 microm, very low in Si., SiO., or SiOO. radicals, and >95% quartz. We investigated the effects of FSD inhalation on the lung using Sprague-Dawley rats. Animals were exposed in whole-body chambers to 10 or 30 mg/m3 FSD collected from a fracking site or filtered air (control) for 6 h/d for 4 d. Measurements were made at 1, 7 and 27 d post-exposure. Neither 10 nor 30 mg/m3 FSD affected basal pulmonary function (lung resistance, RL; dynamic compliance, Cdyn) at any post-exposure time. At 10 mg/m3 FSD Cdyn responses to inhaled methacholine (MCh) were decreased 7 d post-exposure. At 30 mg/m3 FSD reactivity to MCh (RL) was increased at 7 and 27 d post-exposure. No other changes in reactivity to MCh were observed. Lung injury, measured as lactate dehydrogenase activity in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid, was not increased following exposure to either dose of FSD. Neutrophil influx into the lung, an index of inflammation, increased at 7 d following exposure to 10 mg/m3 FSD, whereas neutrophils were elevated at 1 d post-exposure following inhalation of 30 mg/ m3 FSD. BAL phagocyte oxidant production was increased at 7 d following inhalation of 30 mg/m3 FSD. Inflammatory responses were resolved by 27 d post-exposure for both doses of FSD. The results indicate that a four-day exposure of rats to FSD elicits modest changes in pulmonary function and lung inflammation. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Animals Dust Environmental Exposure Immune System Inhalation Exposure Laboratories Lung Methacholine Compounds Occupational Health Oil And Gas Industry Quartz Respiratory System Safety Silicon Dioxide Toxicology

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• Keywords:
  Airway Resistance Crystalline Silica Dose Response Dust Exposure Dust Inhalation Exposure Assessment Exposure Levels Exposure Limits Fracking Gas Industry Hydraulic Fracturing Immune Reaction Inhalants Laboratory Animals Laboratory Testing Lung Function Methacholines Neutrophils Phagocytic Activity Pulmonary Function Quartz Dust Sand Silica Silica Dusts

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• ISSN:
  1096-6080
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  Louisiana ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 6 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  HELD - Health Effects Laboratory Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  66
• Volume:
  150
• Issue:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20047605
• Citation:
  Toxicologist 2016 Mar; 150(1):66
• CAS Registry Number:
  Quartz (SiO2) (CAS RN 14808-60-7) ; Silica (CAS RN 7631-86-9)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2016
• NORA Priority Area:
  Oil and Gas Extraction
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  The Toxicologist. Society of Toxicology 55th Annual Meeting and ToxExpo, March 13-17, 2016, New Orleans, Louisiana
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d2b6ebd443c8812a80d751b4bbfc66e5b5dd41950f36ec4d5e0aa8fea9e4c349e7721497ac2f0406068b4a399075d681f5e694c73207f74a2fe700bfa5c724ac
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/202620/cdc_202620_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 441.65 KB ]