NIOSH Hazard Controls HC26 – Controlling Formaldehyde Exposures During Embalming

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Embalmers are exposed to formaldehyde at concentrations averaging up to 9 parts per million (ppm) during embalming. Short-term exposures to this strong-smelling gas cause eye, nose, and throat irritation at levels up to 5 ppm. At levels from 10 to 20 ppm, it causes cough, chest tightness, and unusual heart beat; and from 50 to 100 ppm, fluid on the lungs, followed by death. Exposure to formaldehyde over a long time may also cause cancer. NIOSH engineers designed and evaluated a local exhaust ventilation [LEV] system that effectively reduces embalmer's exposure to formaldehyde below the OSHA permissible limit of 0.75 ppm, as an 8-hr time-weighted average exposure. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Air Movements Cardiovascular Diseases Cardiovascular System Eye Foreign Bodies Lung Mortality Neoplasms Nose Occupational Health Respiratory System Safety Sense Organs Ventilation

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• Keywords:
  Air-flow Cancer Cardiovascular-system-disorders Control-technology Exhaust-hoods Exhaust-systems Exhaust-ventilation Exposure-limits Eye-irritants Gases Mortality-rates Nasal-disorders Respiratory-gases

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• Series:
  NIOSH Numbered Publications
• Subseries:
  Hazard Control
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHPUB98149
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  EID - Education and Information Division ; DPSE - Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20000279
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 98-149, (HC 26), 1998 Oct; :1-2
• CAS Registry Number:
  Formaldehyde (CAS RN 50-00-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1999
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:e57eb37a3e5618d7a40466cdbf2d4408d491e1f4eaa6cf83a7aedd63a35444d6e7f01464bda18fc320f80aac989052270b75201beaf93e54b693df63d03b2462
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/209773/cdc_209773_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 156.52 KB ]