Occupational exposure to asbestos fibers resulting from use of asbestos gloves

Our plain-English summary of Occupational exposure to asbestos fibers resulting from use of asbestos gloves, by B.S. Samimi, A.M. Williams (American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal, 1981).

The study

• Authors: B.S. Samimi, A.M. Williams
• Journal: American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal
• Published: 1981;42(12):870-5
• Cited by: 5 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher
• In J-M's library: Johns-Manville's company medical library held a copy (J-M no. 000773).

Abstract

To assess the magnitude of fiber emission from asbestos gloves, 10 pairs were compared in an isolation chamber during simulation of a sterilization procedure; 176 air samples were collected. Means of time weighted average (TWA) concentrations ranged from 0.95 to 11.74 fibers (greater than 5 micrometers)/cm3 of air. Well-worn/clean gloves emitted significantly more fibers than did brand-new gloves, but fiber emission decreased with increased surface soiling. Eighty air samples were collected during simulation of the sterilization procedure in a well-ventilated room. The range of mean TWA concentrations was 0.07-0.99 fiber/cm3 for breathing zone samples and 0.06 to 0.60 fiber/cm3 for area samples. Thirteen samples were collected at actual workplaces; the range of TWA concentrations was 0.07-2.93 fibers/cm3 for breathing zone samples and 0.04-0.74 fiber/cm3 for area samples. Five of seven breathing zone samples from workplaces exceeded the proposed TWA concentration limit of 0.1 asbestos fiber/cm3. Hand contamination also was assessed. Four samples collected after touching the worktable ranged from 9953 to 13 108 fibers (greater than 5 micrometers)/cm2 of hand surface area; seven samples collected immediately after taking off gloves ranged from 741 to 3860 fibers/cm2. Available substitutes for asbestos gloves are discussed, and adoption of these substitutes is recommended strongly.

In plain English

This was an air-sampling study of asbestos gloves used to handle hot objects in laboratories. The authors tested 10 pairs of gloves made of cloth containing 80-85% asbestos and 15-20% rayon. Eight pairs were in daily use in six university microbiology and chemistry laboratories, and two pairs were new. The authors simulated a sterilization routine in an unventilated chamber and again in a ventilated preparation room, and they sampled air at the workplaces of five workers. Counting fibers longer than 5 micrometers, mean chamber concentrations ranged from 0.95 to 11.74 fibers per cubic centimeter. Well-worn clean gloves released almost 3 times as many fibers as new gloves, and soiled gloves released fewer. At workplaces, breathing zone levels ranged from 0.07 to 2.93 fibers per cubic centimeter. Five of seven breathing zone samples exceeded a proposed limit of 0.1, and one workplace sample exceeded the then-current OSHA standard of two. Fibers were also found on hands. The authors concluded that their results suggested that wearing asbestos gloves exposes the wearer to potentially hazardous levels of asbestos, and they strongly urged the adoption of substitutes. They noted that the number of workplace samples was limited.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Industrial hygiene exposure study: simulated glove use in an unventilated isolation chamber and in a ventilated room, air sampling at actual workplaces, and hand-contamination experiments
• Who was studied: 10 pairs of asbestos gloves (8 pairs in daily use from six microbiology and chemistry laboratories on two university campuses, plus 2 new pairs from the UW-Parkside stockroom), and five workers in their laboratories (Wisconsin)
• Exposure: Airborne and hand-surface fibers released from asbestos gloves made of asbestos cloth (80-85% asbestos, 15-20% rayon, treated with an acrylate-based compound and described as 'lint-free'), used for sterilizing in autoclaves and drying glassware in ovens. The fiber type is not named.
• Main results:
  • In the unventilated isolation chamber (176 air samples), mean time-weighted average concentrations of fibers longer than 5 micrometers ranged from 0.95 to 11.74 fibers/cm³, depending on the glove pair
  • In the chamber, well-worn/clean gloves emitted almost 3 times as many fibers as brand-new gloves. The differences between glove groups were significant (p less than or equal to 0.01).
  • In the chamber, mean concentrations for lightly soiled and heavily soiled worn gloves were, respectively, 0.6 and 0.1 times the value for clean used gloves
  • In the well-ventilated biology preparation room (80 samples), mean TWA concentrations ranged from 0.07 to 0.99 fiber/cm³ for breathing zone samples and 0.06 to 0.60 fiber/cm³ for area samples. Well-worn/clean gloves again emitted significantly more fibers than brand-new gloves.
  • At the actual workplaces of five workers (13 samples), TWA concentrations ranged from 0.07 to 2.93 fibers/cm³ for breathing zone samples and 0.04 to 0.74 fiber/cm³ for area samples
  • Five of the seven workplace breathing zone samples exceeded the 0.1 fiber/cm³ limit recommended by the NIOSH-OSHA Asbestos Work Group. So did all mean breathing zone values in the preparation room except the one for brand-new gloves at normal workload.
  • Except for one workplace sample, breathing zone concentrations in the preparation room and at workplaces did not exceed the then-current OSHA standard of two asbestos fibers/cm³
  • Workplace exposure depended more on the particular laboratory than on glove condition. A UW-Parkside worker had 29 times the exposure of a Madison Lab 2 worker doing similar work with Group A gloves at a heavy workload. Madison Lab 2 had an efficient exhaust system over its autoclaves.
  • Four hand samples taken after touching the table where gloves had been tossed 16 times ranged from 9953 to 13 108 fibers (longer than 5 micrometers) per cm² of palm surface, with a mean of 11 688
  • Seven hand samples taken immediately after removing gloves ranged from 741 to 3860 fibers per cm² of hand surface (both sides of hands), with a mean of 1925
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that their results suggest use of asbestos gloves exposes the wearer to potentially hazardous levels of asbestos. They strongly urged adoption of non-asbestos substitutes.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • Only a limited number of workplace samples were collected
  • The authors did not confirm the presence of asbestos fibers too small to be seen at 450x magnification; only fibers longer than 5 micrometers were counted
  • Ragged gloves seen in use were not included in the measurements; the authors expected them to emit more fibers than the gloves studied

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Occupational Exposure, Personal Breathing Zone Sample.

Related studies

• Airway wall remodeling induced by occupational mineral dusts and air pollutant particles — A. Churg, J.L. Wright (2002)
• Human occupational and nonoccupational exposure to fibers — N.A. Esmen, S. Erdal (1990)
• Indoor asbestos pollution: application of hazard criteria — R.N. Sawyer (1979)
• Early life exposure to environmental tobacco smoke alters immune response to asbestos via a shift in inflammatory phenotype resulting in increased disease development — T.A. Brown, A. Holian, et al. (2016)
• Review of refractory ceramic fiber (RCF) toxicity, epidemiology and occupational exposure — L.D. Maxim, M.J. Utell (2018)
• Occupational exposure to carbon fibers impregnated with epoxy resins and evaluation of their respirability — P. Lovreglio, A. Stufano, et al. (2020)

Browse more research in American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal, or return to medical research.