Industrial hygiene, chemical and biological assessments of exposures to a chlorinated phenolic sapstain control agent

A two-year study of the occupational exposure of workers in a lumber mill to a wood preservative containing chlorophenol has been conducted. The methods were biological (urine) monitoring, industrial hygiene assessment and a questionnaire related to worker-perceived health effects. Approximately 40 workers exposed to the wood preservative and 40 unexposed controls working in other locations of the plant participated in the study. Evaluation of work conditions, assessment of urinary levels of tetra- and pentachlorophenol, and administration of a medical questionnaire were performed at a six-month intervals over a two-year period. Industrial hygiene ratings of exposures and adequacy of protection were evaluated in relation to the results of biological monitoring. Workers who came into contact with freshly treated and still wet wood had consistently higher urinary levels of tetrachlorophenol. Workers stationed adjacent to the spray applicator also had higher tetrachlorophenol levels. There was no statistically significant relationship between the subjective ratings by the industrial hygienist of exposure and adequacy of worker protection with the urinary levels of tetrachlorophenol. Nor was there a consistent pattern linking exposure ratings with adequacy of protection. The short half-life of tetrachlorophenol in the urine makes this a good indicator of only the most recent exposure. The differences in urinary levels between controls and exposed workers were large, with averages of 240.4 ppb for exposed workers and 14.6 for controls. Traditional industrial hygiene evaluation techniques, in conjunction with biological monitoring, proved to be the most effective method of assessing both exposure and work practices. Exposed workers reported a statistically significant increase of positive answers to known signs and symptoms of chlorophenol exposure compared with the controls. There was no statistically significant relationship between the number of these health problems reported and the mean urinary levels of tetra- or pentachlorophenol for the exposed group; however, for certain variables (heavy vs. light exposure, inadequate vs. adequate protection, greater than 100 ppb urinary tetrachlorophenol vs. less than 100 ppb), those with heavier exposure, inadequate protection or higher urinary tetrachlorophenol reported on the average more health problems over the two-year period. Firm statistical conclusions could not be drawn because of the small size of the study population.