Occupational exposure to metallic cobalt in the Province of Bergamo. Results of a 1991 survey
| Autor: | S. Polini, M. Caironi, G. Maccarana, G. Ravasio, P.C. Parigi, P. Imbrogno, Giovanni Mosconi, M. Bacis, P. Leghissa, L. Airoldi, G. Luzzana, E. Arsuffi |
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| Rok vydání: | 1994 |
| Předmět: |
Lung Diseases
Engineering Environmental Engineering chemistry.chemical_element Context (language use) Air Pollutants Occupational Risk Factors Environmental health Occupational Exposure Environmental Chemistry Humans Waste Management and Disposal Hard metal business.industry Data Collection Workplace air Environmental engineering HARD-METAL DISEASE Cobalt Pollution chemistry Italy Metallurgy Occupational exposure business |
| Zdroj: | The Science of the total environment. 150(1-3) |
| ISSN: | 0048-9697 |
| Popis: | The results of a survey on workers potentially exposed to cobalt in the Bergamo Province are reported. Its aim is to assess the number of workers at risk of developing respiratory disease due to the inhalation of metallic cobalt. Interest was shown after an examination of 11 cases of ‘hard metal disease’, which we diagnosed, in workers who came from different production areas and had different degrees of exposure. A first group of 45 factories with potential cobalt exposure was identified by consulting the archives of the Local Sanitary Units (USSL) and of the Chamber of Commerce, and by use of the telephone directory and requesting information from the producers and users of Widia tools. A second group of 2039 factories was selected from those industrial activities where we had previously ascertained the presence of grinding operations using hard metal tools with diamond wheels. This study is related to all the factories in the first group and 10% of the factories in the second group. More than 304 inspections were carried out. In this context 403 exposed workers were identified. Workplace air measurements (250 samples) and biological monitoring (>600 samples) to determine the exposure levels to cobalt were performed. The results show an unexpected diffuse occupational exposure in different production areas where the airborne cobalt is frequently underestimated and higher than the TLV. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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