Document RopbNKo0g73REZ47zw3vKe2X

. 1968 American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal 353 The aluminum and silicas were in all prob ability associated either with the talc mole cule, or additives such as kaolin, or the base material from which the talc was derived. 22 ru .-s' x nickel 0 ppnu 8 conchroini- 10 pp"1 alitaiiv 1 in il'1' nt state ingane-e ne ft'""1 he all"' used >" ucts nag/g"1 lieh had itanh"" ths to ''' preset" [gnestt"" 10 iich h-li as "" " innl-111 or "d1' Known Health Effects of Talc Much of our knowledge of the health effects of talc is derived from studies of occu pational exposures in its mining, milling, and industrial use. In extrapolating this knowl edge to the cosmetic use of talcum powder, it must be recognized that the pattern of ex posures in the use of talcum product varies markedly from person to person, not only in frequency of use but also in amount and in location. In contrast to industrial exposures where the pattern is likely to be more continuous 'vith accompanying peaks, exposure in the use of cosmetic talcum products is very inter mittent with peak exposures dominating. The exposure pattern may continue a lifetime, especially if the use of talcum is established k in the earlier years as a part of personal habits. The air-borne dosage to workers from industrial exposures to talc that have resulted n injury to health were undoubtedly much higher, however, than would be predicted from the use of cosmetic talcum products. Mining, Milling, and Industrial Use The clinical entity of talc pneumoconiosis, talcosis," has been observed repeatedly in "orkers with long exposure to talc in its min Ing, milling, and industrial use.14-17 Elongated, 'erminally clubbed pulmonary fibrous bodies, !>th segmented and unsegmented and similar n morphology to ferruginous bodies, have found in talc workers, but these workers had received a mixed exposure-- to talc, tremlite, anthophyllite, and silica.18,10 In one 'tudv20 the mortality rate from cancer of the ung and pleura was four times greater for a -toup of talc workers than for the general Imputation. In pulmonary cancer from asbes1051 lhe role of fibers and trace metals is unrrtain. Some investigators have assumed the hers play a dominant and direct role: more 'rtCr>t investigations indicate that the fibers naVhave been only an index concealing a h>rtrum of unidentified agents and rela'mnshlp.u Surgical and Cosmetic Use The only reported cutaneous reactions from the use of talcum powder are talc granulomas, and these have been rare.21,22 Talcum pow der. however, is no longer used on surgical gloves and should not be applied to broken skin. Occasionally, perfume oils used in tal cum powder formulations sensitize the skin and produce dermatitis.22,24 Conclusions With the exception of 4 of the 22 cosmetic talcum products analyzed, the levels of free silica, cobalt, nickel, chromium, and man ganese were generally of a low magnitude and within a narrow range. It is not known whether the four products represent a signifi cant proportion of sales in the industry or to what extent the sources of the talc in these four formulations are the same as sources of talc specified for use in other talcum products in the competitive market. The levels of silica, chromium, and nickel in these four products are sufficiently high, however, to be of con cern in their potential to cause disease. All of the 22 talcum products analyzed have an appreciable fiber content, ranging from 8 to 30% by count of the total talcum particulates, and averaging 19%. The fibrous material was predominantly talc but probably contained minor amounts of tremolite, an thophyllite, and chrysotile as these are often present in fibrous talc mineral deposits. Cos metic talcum products should be included as a source of the fibers, from which may be derived ferruginous bodies observed in the lungs of humans. The meaning of the pres ence of these ferruginous bodies, however, is uncertain. Industry has the know-how to safely handle fibrous material as well as toxic metals such as nickel, chromium, cobalt, and manganese once adequate criteria have been established. Unknown significant amounts of such mate rials in products that may be used without precautions may create an unsuspected prob lem. For this reason continued research and investigations and communication of findings are necessary in this area. 354 July-August, 1968 Acknowledgments The authors acknowledge, with apprecia tion, the technical assistance of Harrold B. Norris who made the free silica determina tions; Patricia L. Maurer who made the atomic absorption spectrophotometric deter minations for nickel, cobalt, chromium, and manganese; John R. Carlberg who made the emission spectrographic determinations for zirconium, titanium, zinc, iron, magnesium, and aluminum; and Stephen Bayer and Ralph Zumwalde for the fiber determinations. References 1. M archand, F .: U ber Eigentm liche Pigm entkristalle in Den Lungen. Verh Dtsch Path. Ges. 10: 223 (1906). 2. T h o m so n , J. G ., R . O . C. K asciula, and R. R. M ac D onald; Asbestosis as a M odern U rban H azard. S. Afr. M ed. ] . 37: 77 (Jan. 1963). 3. T h o m so n , J. G ., and W. M. G raves, Jr .: Asbestos as an U rban Air C ontam inant. Arch, of Path. 81: 458 (May 1966). 4. Caum a, D .. R. S. T o tten, and P. G r o s s : Asbestos Bodies in H um an Lungs at Autopsy. ] . Am er. M ed. Assoc. 192: 371 (M ay 1965). 5. W ebster. I.: Annual Report of the Pneumoconiosis Research Unit of the South African Council for Scien tific and Industrial Research. Johannesburg, South Africa (1965). 6. M eurm a n, La u r i: Asbestos Bodies and Pleural Plaques in a Finnish Series of Autopsy Cases. Acta Path. Microbiol. Scand., Supplem entum 181 (1966). 7. A n jil v e l , L.. and W. M. T h u r l b e c k : The Incidence of Asbestos Bodies in the Lungs at Random Necropsies in M ontreal. Canad. M ed. Assoc. J. 95: 1179 (Dec. 1965). 8. C ooper, W. C-, an d I. T abershaw : T o be published. 9. C ralley, L. J ., R. G. K een an, J. R. L y n c h , and W. S. L a in h a rt: Source and Identification of Respira ble Fibers. Am er. Indus. Hyg. Assoc. J. 29: 129 (M arApr. 1968). 10. D eer, W. A ., R . A. H o w ie , a n d J . Za ssm a n : Rock Forming Minerals. Vol. 3, Sheet Silicates, p. 126, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York (1962). 11. K ir k , R . E ., and D. F. O t h m e r : Encylopedia of Chemical Technology. Vol. 13, p. 565, The Interscience Publishers, Inc., New York (1954). 12. Ibid. Vol. 6, p. 357, (1965). 13. C ralley, L. J ., R . G . K een an, and J. R. Lynch: Exposure to Metals in the M anufacture of Asbesto> Textile Products. Am er. Indus. Hyg. Assoc. J. 28: 451) (1967). 14. H ogue, W. L ., J r ., and F. S. M allette: A Study ol Workers Exposed to Talc and O th e r Dusting Compounds in the R ubber Industry. J. Indus. Hyg. 6? Toxicol. 31 359 (1949). 15. M e s s it e , J ., G. R eddin. and M. K l ein feld : Pulmonary Talcosis, a Clinical and Environm ental Study. AMA Arch. Indus. Health 20: 408 (1959). 16. Sc h e pe r s, G. W. H ., and T . M. D u r k a n : T he Effects of Inhaled Talc-M ining Dust on the Human Lung A M A Arch. Indus. H ealth 12: 182 (1955). 17. Secler, A. O ., J . S. G ry b o sk i, a n d H. E. M acmahon: T a lc Pneum oconiosis. A M A Arch. Indus. Health 19 392 (1959). 18. K l ein feld , M ., C. P. G iel, J. F. Ma jer a n o w sk i, and J. M e s s it e : Talc Pneumoconiosis: A Report of Six Patients with Postmortem Findings. AMA Arch. En viron. H ealth 7: 101 (1963). 19. K ipl in o , M. D., and A. O . Bech : Talc Pneumoconio sis. Trans. Assoc. Indus. M ed. Officers 10: 85 (1960). 20. K lein feld, M ., J. M e s s it e , M. Z a k i, and O. Koovm a n: M ortality Among Talc Miners and Millers in New York State. A M A Arch. Environ. Health 14: 66J (1967). 21. Lichtman, A. L., J. R. McDonald, C. F. Dixon, and F. C. Ma n n : Talc G ranulom a. Surg. Gynec. & Obst 83: 531 (1946). 22. T y e , M. J ., K . H a s h im o to , and F. Fox: T a lc Granu lomas of the Skin. / . Am er. M ed. Assn. 198: 1370 (1966). 23. Bu r k s, J. W .: Derm atitis Due to Cosmetics. Southern M ed. J. 55: 1006 (1963). 24. Spoor, H. J .: Skin Reactions to Cosmetics: Classifica tions and Diagnosis. N ew York J. M ed. 60: 1940 (1960) Human Factors Association of Canada On June 1 a group of 29 people gathered in Toronto, Canada, and formed the Human Factors Association of Canada. It is anticipated that the Associa tion will have membership throughout Canada and will represent interests of the many disciplines concerned with man's functioning in his physical and machine environments. The following officers were elected: President, Dr. R. B. Bromiley, Vice-President, Dr. E. Llewellyn Thomas, Secretary-Treasurer, Mr. Ronald E. F. Lewis. The following were named Directors: Dr. J. R. Brown, Dr. A. C. Bryan, Dr. Ruth Hoyt and Mr. J. F. Martin. Correspondence should be addressed to: Secretary-Treasurer, Human Factors Association of Canada, c/o Defence Research Establishment Toronto, Box 2000 Downsview, Ontario, Canada.