Details:

Personal Author:
Horton, D. Kevin ; Berkowitz, Zahava ; Kaye Wendy E.
Horton, D. Kevin ; Berkowitz, Zahava ; Kaye Wendy E. Less -
Corporate Authors:
United States. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. Division of Health Studies/Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch.
Description:
Chlorine, a commonly used hazardous substance, can be harmful to human health when improperly released. Data from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry's Hazardous Substances Emergency Events Surveillance system were used to conduct a retrospective analysis on the public health consequences from acute chlorine release in 16 states during 1993 through 2000. There was an overall decline in the number of chlorine events during the period analyzed; however, chlorine events were more likely to result in events with victims, evacuations, and decontaminations when compared with nonchlorine events (relative risk [RR] = 4.5, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 4.1 to 5.0; [RR] = 4.8, CI 4.3 to 5.3; and [RR] = 2.0, CI 1.7 to 2.4, respectively). Most chlorine victims were employees and members of the general public. The predominant symptoms sustained were respiratory and eye irritation. Equipment failure and human error were the most frequent factors leading to an event. Continuous employee training and preventive equipment maintenance can help prevent chlorine releases from occurring and minimize exposure to the general public.

The article, "The Public Health Consequences From Acute Chlorine Releases, 1993–2000," is provided on this Web site as it was submitted by the author to the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. The article as it is published in the journal may contain edits (J Occup Environ Med 2002;44:906–13). This article was written by an officer or employee of the U.S. government as part of his/her official duties; therefore, the content is in the public domain.


Subject:
[+]
Chlorine/adverse Effects
Decontamination/methods
Decontamination/statistics & Numerical Data
Disasters/prevention & Control
Disasters/statistics & Numerical Data
Environmental Exposure/adverse Effects
Environmental Monitoring
Epidemiological Monitoring
Female
First Aid/statistics & Numerical Data
Hazardous Substances/adverse Effects
Humans
Incidence
Male
Occupational Exposure/adverse Effects
Public Health
Registries
Retrospective Studies
Risk Assessment
Risk Factors
Wounds And Injuries/chemically Induced
Wounds And Injuries/epidemiology

Source:
J Occup Environ Med. 2002 Oct;44(10):906-13.
Pubmed ID:
12391769
Place as Subject:
United States
Collection(s):
CDC Public Access
Main Document Checksum:
[+]
urn:sha256:693c546b8c0045a5a753bbee8c632428cf7fa0eec0bbd3114939955087f01b80
File Type:

Supporting Files

• No Additional Files

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