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| NIOSH Home > Safety and Health Topics >Skin Exposures and Effects >Occupational & Environmental Exposures of Skin to Chemicals- 2005> Abstracts |
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A whole-body exposure chamber for studies of skin exposure to particles
L. Lundgren*1, L. Skare2, C. Lidén2,3 Objective
We constructed a whole-body exposure chamber, specially designed for exposure with airborne particles, and to be used in experimental and controlled exposure of skin and respiratory tract. Design
The exposure chamber (volume 5.7 m3, floor area 1.8 m x 1.5 m) is made of stainless steel, aluminium, glass and other non-allergenic materials. Clean air is supplied into the chamber via the roof with a circular spreader, which together with a secondary air supply containing the dust gives an acceptable air mixture. Air supply can be varied giving air exchange rate between 12 and 18 times per hour. A controlled and continuous particle concentration is achieved with a solid particle disperser (an RBG-1000 particle generator from Palas GmbH). The concentration of airborne particles, the spatial and temporal variation in the chamber is measured with direct reading instruments and by conventional personal air sampling devices. The airborne particle size is measured with PIDS impactors (personal inhalable dust spectrometer). Skin exposure in healthy subjects can be measured by different techniques. Results
The whole-body exposure chamber has been used in studies with different airborne particles – wheat flour, glove powder (cornstarch) and pinewood dust. It has been used in the development of skin exposure assessment techniques, and in studies of the respiratory tract. Detailed results from studies of skin exposure assessment with cornstarch are given in poster “Measuring dust particles deposited on skin using a vacuuming sampler“. Conclusion
This special whole-body exposure chamber system for dust particles is relatively easy to run and to control. The airborne particle concentration may be adjusted to different required concentration levels. Dust generation was shown to give uniform temporal and spatial particle distribution around a subject as well as a uniform skin deposition on the forearms and shoulders. Such an exposure chamber may be a useful tool in the development of techniques for measurement of skin contamination and also for studying skin and respiratory effects of exposure to airborne dust. References
Lidén C, Lundgren L, Skare L et al. A new whole-body exposure chamber for human skin and lung challenge experiments--the generation of wheat flour aerosols. Ann Occup Hyg 42: 541-7, 1998. Gripenbäck S, Lundgren L, Eklund A et al. Wheat flour exposure results in recruitment of inflammatory cells in the lungs of healthy individuals. Am J Ind Med 44: 75 – 82, 2003. Grünewald J, Eklund A, Katchar, K et al. Lung accumulations of eosinophil granulocytes after exposure to cornstarch glove powder. Eur Respir J 21: 646 – 51, 2003.
Content last modified: 17 May 2005 |
