In March 2007, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) was asked to evaluate the noise exposure of employees in the Nutrition and Food Services Department of a large hospital, because of noise concerns raised after the installation of the PowerSoak dishwashing system. Eleven employees (two cooks, eight food service workers, and a materials handler) contributed 13 full-...

A general method has been developed for the preparation of microspheres of nanoporous pigments, their formulation into chemically responsive pigment inks, and the printing of these inks as colorimetric sensor arrays. Using an ultrasonic-spray aerosol-gel synthesis from chemically responsive dyes and common silica precursors, 16 different nanoporous pigment microspheres have been prepared and ch...

Toluene diisocyanate (TDI) is a recognized chemical asthmogen, yet the mechanism of this toxicity and the molecular reactions involved have not been elucidated. We have previously shown that TDI vapor forms adducts with the apical surface of the respiratory epithelium, and that it colocalizes with ciliary tubulin. In vitro, we have shown rapid reaction of TDI with glutathione (GSH) and transfer...

Background: Chemicals from laboratories represent a significant risk in cellular mediated hypersensitivity (CMH) and chemo-induced skin injury due to chemical agents present under human layers absorbed the surface. This study aimed determine occupational socio-demographic characteristics of laboratory workers associated with CMH multiple exposures. Design: was cross-sectional on population-base...

OBJECTIVE This study aims to compare liver function indices (aspartate aminotransferase [AST], alanine aminotransferase [ALT], and gamma glutamyl transferase [GGT]) among males who work with lead, organic solvents, or both lead and organic solvents, under the permissible exposure limit (PEL). METHODS A total of 593 (out of 2,218) male workers who agreed to share their personal health informat...

This report considers the historical origin of the current beryllium occupational exposure limit (OEL) and the evidence that led most authorities to conclude that it was adequately protective against clinically evident chronic beryllium disease (CBD). Nearly 40 years later, during the late 1980s, it was shown that in addition to CBD, beryllium can cause asymptomatic sensitization and asymptomat...

The purpose of this study is to describe the personal exposure to respirable dust and quartz and in stone crushing units located at west of Iran. A size of 40 personal samples and 40 stationary samples were obtained and analysis was done by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results of personal sampling were shown the concentrations of respirable dust exposure level in workers of process, hopper and ...

BACKGROUND The term "crystalline silica" refers to crystallized form of SiO2 and quartz, as the most abundant compound on the earth's crust; it is capable of causing silicosis and lung cancer upon inhaling large doses in the course of occupational exposure. The aim of this study was to assess occupational exposure to dust and crystalline silica in foundries in Pakdasht, Iran. MATERIALS AND ME...

BACKGROUND Benzene is a common industrial chemical known to induce leukemia and other blood disorders, as well as aneuploidy, in both human blood cells and sperm at exposures > 10 ppm. Recent reports have identified health effects at exposure levels < 1 ppm, the permissible exposure limit (PEL; 8 hr) set by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. OBJECTIVE We investigated whet...