A Small Dose of Solvents and Vapors

• An Introduction into the Health Effects of Solvents and Vapors

Solvents Dossier

Name: Solvent (broad class of chemicals)

• Use: varied - recreational (alcohol) to industrial (gasoline, degreasers)
• Source: synthetic chemistry, petroleum products; plant oils
• Recommended daily intake: none (not essential)
• Absorption: intestine, inhalation (major), skin
• Sensitive individuals: fetus, children
• Toxicity/symptoms: nervous system, reproductive system, and death
• General facts: long history of use (alcohol), highly volatility of solvent results in inhalation exposure of vapors
• Environmental: volatile organic compounds react with sunlight to produce smog
• Recommendations: avoid, use proper workplace protection

Solvents Chapter

• A Small Dose of Solvents - chapter pdf

PowerPoint presentation

• A Small Dose of Solvents - PowerPoint presentation (0.5 mgb)

More Information and References

European, Asian, and international Agencies

• United Nations Office on Drugs Control and Crime (UNODC). (accessed: 16 April 2009).

North American Agencies

• US Department of Labor - Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA). (accessed: 16 April 2009).
  This site has extensive information on solvents in the workplace.

• US Agency for Toxic Substance Disease Registry (ATSDR). (accessed: 16 April 2009).
  Site contains fact sheets and case studies on many common solvents.

• US National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). (accessed: 16 April 2009).
  Site contains information on inhalants and solvents as drugs of abuse.

• US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Ozone Layer Depletion - Alternatives (accessed: 16 April 2009).
  Site has comprehensive information on alternatives to ozone and other solvents for products and processes.

• US National Library of Medicine. Tox Town - Solvents. (accessed: 16 April 2009).
  Address various areas were solvents can be found from city to farm, and work place.

• US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Organic Solvents. (accessed: 16 April 2009).
  Excellent information on a wide range of solvents.

Non-Government Organizations

• Anesthesia Nursing & Medicine. (accessed: 16 April 2009).
  Site has in-depth information on the history and current practice of anesthesia.

• American Lung Association. Solvents in the Workplace. (accessed: 16 April 2009).
  General information on the health effects of solvents in the work place.

• The Wood Library-Museum of Anesthesiology. (accessed: 16 April 2009).
  The objective of the Wood Library-Museum of Anesthesiology is to collect and preserve literature and equipment pertaining to anesthesiology and to make available to the anesthesiology community, others in the medical profession and the public the most comprehensive educational, scientific and archival resources in anesthesiology

References

• Charles Darwin The Autobiography of Charles Darwin 1809-1882. by Charles Darwin, Nora Barlow (Editor), W.W. Norton & Company, New York, NY, 1993, 253 pages.

• MMWR (2001). n-Hexane--Related Peripheral Neuropathy Among Automotive Technicians – California, 1999—2000. Vol 50, No 45;1011, 11/16/2001. (accessed: 16 April 2009).

• Dick, FD. (2006). Solvent neurotoxicity. Occup Environ Med. 63(3): 221-226. doi: 10.1136/oem.2005.022400.
  Feldman, RG, Ratner, MH, and Ptak, T. (1999). Chronic toxic encephalopathy in a painter exposed to mixed solvents. Environ Health Perspect. 107(5): 417-422.