Carbon monoxide: dosimetry in occupational exposures in Denver, Colorado

Details

• Personal Author:
  Beaulieu HJ ; Buchan RM ; Jabara JW ; Keefe TJ
• Description:
  Carbon-monoxide (630080) (CO) exposures were monitored for traffic control officers with the Denver Police Department during 8 hour workday shifts. Comparisons were selected from police department employees who worked in an office and workers at the air pollution office of the State Health Department. Measurements were made periodically from September 1978 through January of 1979. Personal air sampling was carried out using four General Electric CO dosimeters which made it possible to monitor three subjects and one comparison each day that sampling was conducted. The nonsmoking comparisons had five high dosimeter readings which averaged 18.7 parts per million (ppm) CO/hour. It was thought that these readings were due to CO leakage into the police department office from the downstairs parking garage. Omitting these five dosimeter readings, the average dosimeter reading for the nonsmoking controls would have been 6.4ppm CO/hour. While the high ranges of dosimeter readings on the traffic officers did exceed the OSHA standard of 50ppm for an 8 hour time weighted average, the levels were well within occupational standards when the average of all dosimeter readings was computed. A slight, but nonsignificant increase in readings was noted during the PM shift and during the winter months. Ambient CO measures were low when compared to the actual occupational exposures experienced by the officers. After work expired breath samples were monitored for carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) levels. Smoking had a significant impact on the COHb levels of the subjects. Throughout the study a close association was noted between the dosimeter readings and the COHb levels. The authors conclude that CO dosimeter readings could be used as an index of CO exposure in an occupational setting. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Biological Assay Environmental Exposure Environmental Monitoring Environmental Pollution Hazardous Substances Hematologic Tests Law Enforcement Occupational Health Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety Vehicle Emissions

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• Keywords:
  Air-quality-monitoring Automotive-emissions Bioassays Blood-analysis Environmental-pollution Exhaust-gases NIOSH-Grant NIOSH-Publication Policemen Pulmonary-system-disorders Toxic-gases

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• ISSN:
  0003-9896
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; OSHA Region 8
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  198-204
• Volume:
  35
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00187003
• Citation:
  Arch Environ Health 1980 Jul; 35(4):198-204
• Contact Point Address:
  Microbiology Colorado State University Department of Microbiology Fort Collins, Colo 80523
• CAS Registry Number:
  Carbon monoxide (CAS RN 630-08-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1980
• NORA Priority Area:
  Pulmonary System Disorders
• Performing Organization:
  Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  19750701
• Source Full Name:
  Archives of Environmental Health
• End Date:
  19940630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:eb2895e657fcb2efbdae40b94315f579ed751679a360bc1df8a270a39951b958cf6e8be9c19843b65101b42edc2c07576a7da331e251b78fb1e56a1eaf15dd7f
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/204283/cdc_204283_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 920.17 KB ]