Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-2012-0012-3192, September 2013. An Evaluation of Respiratory Health at a Flavoring Manufacturring Facility in Kentucky.

摘要

In October 2011, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health received a confidential employee request for a health hazard evaluation at a flavoring manufacturing facility in Kentucky. The request concerned exposure to chemicals including diacetyl, lack of respiratory protection and ventilation, and upper and lower respiratory problems including shortness of breath. Diacetyl is a butter flavoring chemical that can cause lung disease. Prior to visiting the site, we interviewed employees, the health and safety manager, and the facility's spirometry provider by telephone and reviewed documents provided by the facility. From November 29 to December 1, 2011 we visited the facility. We toured the facility, interviewed managers, and conducted private interviews with employees representing the facility's departments. We conducted air sampling for volatile organic compounds using evacuated canisters and qualitatively assessed local exhaust ventilation. We collected and reviewed reports of spirometry tests. The spirometry testing often was not conducted according to international guidelines, so we could not reliably interpret the tests. From March 12 to 22, 2012, we conducted a medical survey at the facility consisting of an interviewer-administered questionnaire and lung function tests (spirometry and diffusing capacity). We found that the facility used thousands of chemicals, some of which are recognized respiratory toxins and most of which have unknown respiratory toxicity. The facility provided a list of chemicals for which respirator use is required during the preparation of flavor recipes. There were many controls in place to limit employees' exposure to these chemicals. However, we noted some opportunities for exposure to these chemicals, including: lack of labeling of respiratory hazards in some cases, inadequate local exhaust ventilation, early removal of respiratory protection, and disposal of flavoring waste into open containers. We did not detect diacetyl in any air samples. We detected a diacetyl substitute, 2,3-pentanedione, in two air samples taken in the liquid samples room. Among current employees, some symptoms and diagnoses were more common than expected, while spirometric abnormalities were not in excess compared to U.S. adults.