Nationally, the most important source of exposure to any mercury compound is the consumption of fish. Certain populations may have occupational exposures and in certain areas of NJ consumption of water from private wells can be a significant source of mercury exposure (see Volume II Chapter 7). The extent of exposure to mercury from cultural uses is not known and such practices appear to be lim...

Several case-control studies have demonstrated positive associations between parental occupational exposures and childhood cancer. However, an overestimation of risk estimates due to recall bias is of concern. The magnitude and nature of this bias were explored using data from a German case-control study on childhood leukemia conducted between 1992 and 1997. A moderate overreporting of occupati...

BACKGROUND While many previous reports describe injuries to adolescents in the workplace, few focus on toxic substance exposures among such injuries. Yet low-skill, entry-level jobs pose a particular hazard of toxic exposure owing to the frequent use of cleaning agents, solvents, and/or other chemicals in carrying out assigned tasks. OBJECTIVE To analyze the types and severity of adolescent o...

The objectives of this study was to review many epidemiological risk factors on the occurrence of malignant pleural mesothelioma among occupational and nonoccupational asbestos-exposed men and women mentioned in several previous studies. Asbestos exposure is a well-documented etiological factor of malignant pleural mesothelioma. The majority of cases are men and only 40% of female cases are occ...

In 1991 the Mine Safety and Health Administration conducted a special program to assess occupational exposures to respirable coal mine dust in underground coal mines. Priority was given to longwall mining operations, mines with a history ofhaving a problem controlling dust to the applicable standard, and a representative number of all other mines. Measurements were obtained on approximately 720...

Few studies of cancer mortality and incidence among flight crew have included a detailed assessment of both occupational exposures and lifestyle factors that may influence the risk of cancer. In this issue, Kojo et al. (Risk factors for skin cancer among Finnish airline cabin crew. Ann Occup. Hyg 2013; 57: 695-704) evaluated the relative contributions of ultraviolet and cosmic radiation to the ...

To implement adequate preventive measures in a hospital, the number and nature of occupational exposures to blood must be known. In the Amsterdam Academic Medical Centre a standardised procedure was used to assess all reported occupational exposures to blood from 2003 to 2010. 1601 incidents were reported of which 66% were needlestick accidents. Thirty-five percent of the incidents concerned pe...

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health received a health hazard evaluation request from West Virginia University Hospital, Morgantown, to evaluate noise exposures from surgical instruments in the OR. Four surgical technologists, four RNs, and one surgeon wore noise dosimeters to measure full-shift personal noise exposures during two days while they performed typical daily act...

Benzene has become one of the most intensely regulated substances in the world. Its ubiquitous use as a solvent has led to many working populations being exposed; in the early days often in uncontrolled conditions, leading to high exposures. Current occupational exposures are tightly controlled and are largely confined to workers in the petrochemical industry, vehicle mechanics, firefighters, w...