Document YGO7LXg32von9dEj0LYmGwXLO

r X 4t ftCV IS-? E. I. CSTMUSMrO 1*02 du Pont de N emours & Company |HCO*PORATC0 W il m in g t o n . Delaware 19898 PLASTIC PRODUCTS' AND RESINS DEPARTMENT PERSONAL & CONFIDENTIAL J . C. LEITINGER - WW / August 9, 1978 W. A. BOWER WASHINGTON WORKS MEDICAL SURVEILLANCE PROGRAMS The attached letter response of August 3 from Dr. Karrh summarizes his recommendations applicable to both C-8 and Telomer-A at Washington Works. Copies of the July 24 and June 16 letters, to which he refers, are appended also. It is assumed that the plant physicians will contact Dr. Karrh directly with any questions and in connection with medical record reviews, Z iL R. M. SHEPHERD ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS MANUFACTURING DIVISION RMS: ldb Attachment i7Mnn,rrv EID080236 B E T T E R T H IN G S F O R B E T T E R LIV IN G *. . .T H R O U G H CHEM ISTRY 000130 E. I. OTJJUSNIOIMI du Po n t de N e m o u r s 51 C o m p a n y INCORPORATED W ilm in g to n, Delaware EMPLOYEE RELATIONS DEPARTMENT Augu s t 3, 1978 R. M. SHEPHERD PP&R D-12019 C-8 EXPOSURE -- WASHINGTON WORKS MEDICAL SURVEILLANCE PROGRAM Reference R.M.Shepherd to B.W. Karrh, July 31, 1978 |'ff-lvv'<r ..r i K- f* - V <7 I W I had received a copy of your letter to H. Moncure, and Dr. Foderaro had contacted Dr. Alvarado at Washington Works. The plan they agreed to was for Dr. Alvarado to review the medical records of employees who had been identified as previously having been exposed to C-8 compounds. He would be searching for any findings that could.possibly be related to occupational factors. We have not heard from Dr. Alvarado nor have we followed up. The Medical Division recommends that employees poten tially exposed to C-8 at the Washington Works have the same medical surveillance program as was outlined in my July 24 letter to F. E. French*. You' will, note this is our regular periodic examina tion and should be conducted at the same frequency, consistent with the Company's periodic examination program. There are no recommendations for special testing nor for an increased frequency of examinations for employees working with C-8. The only other recommendation is for those employees identified as having had potential exposure to these compounds to have the blood test for Ihf luorochemicals. ave est.abl.ished,, However, the_backg these rqund tests should not be done level ..of_f.luor.ochemicais p until resen we t.' in tfie blood of nonexposed persons. We will do this in the Medical Division as soon as Jackson Laboratory can take our blood specimens. You also inquire regarding my June 16 letter to F. E. French about the applicability and status of the recommendations for Du Pont employees whose jobs have potential for exposures to similar fluorochemicals. I recommend that Washington Works follow the ...same- .seven.~a.c.tlon.JDoints"as outlinedP_~in.lth`at_r_l.&tt.er- ~Howev'e`r? you will recognize that Action Point 4 will be done by the; Medical D i v i s i o n .... / /; '3 Please .contact me should you have additional questions or comments. EID080237 BWK/ag BRUCE t. KARRH, M.D. TH ER E'S A WORLD OF THING S W E ARE DOING SOMETHING ABOUT 000131I - I KSTMU&NC8 M02 E. I. du Pont de N emours S Company IN CCW rOWATCO W il m in g t o n , Delav/ are EMPLOYEE RELATIONS DEPARTMENT July 24, 1978 F. E. FRENCH CD&P MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS FOR FLUOROCHEMICAL WORKERS 3M's physical examination program for workers potentially exposed to fluorochemicals was somewhat less extensive than our routine periodic examination with one exception. A few 3M employees, selected because their jobs had the greatest potential for fluorochemical exposure, received special x-rays of the pelvis ^to determine if there was thickening of the bones consistent with fluorosis. Incidentally, these x-rays were negative. Our medical surveillance examinations for fluorochemical workers should be the regular Du Pont periodic physical examination consisting of a health history questionnaire, an examination by or under the supervision of a physician, urinalysis 12 blood chemistry tests (glucose, BUN, SGOT, LDH, alkaline phosphatase, bilirubin, total protein wi albumin and globulin, calcium, phosphorus, creatinine, uric acid, cholesterol) o 7 hematology tests (white and red blood cell counts, hemoglobin, Hematocrit, and red blood cell indicies, o vision test, o audiogram, o 14 x 17 posterio-anterior chest x-ray, o Height, weight, blood pressure, and pulse, o Screening pulmonary function tests (FEVi and FVC) o Electrocardiograms at the routine intervals. I recommend we not include special x-ray examinations. BWK/ag T H E R E 'S A W ORLD OF T H IN G S W E ARE "DOING SO M ETH IN G A B O U T ' - __ 000132 CSTAIUlNtaitOf H . I . du Po n t de N em o u r s 51 C o m p a n y tN C eftF O ftA T C O W ilm in g to n , Delaware EMPLOYEE RELATIONS DEPARTMENT T. W. Hanavan, Legal H. Moncure, PP&R S.' Pell, ERD J. Foderaro,M.D. B. C. McKusick, CR&D June 16, 1978 F. E. FRENCH CD&P B 17264 FLUOROCHEMICALS IN BLOOD 3M has reported finding FC143, plus other unidentified fluorochemicals in the blood of potentially exposed workers. As yet, no adverse health effect has been detected in these workers and the significance of these findings is unknown. These chemicals have also been detected by tests on the workers' urine, with good correlation with the blood test results but in very small quantities Similar tests have not been done on the general population, although a few tests have been done on plant office workers. The Medical Division recommends the following course of action for Du Pont employees whose jobs have potential for exposure to Telomer A and its non-polymeric derivatives. 1. Review-all current operations and industrial hygiene controls to insure that the potentials for exposures are properly controlled. 2. Identify all employees who currently work or have " worked jobs in which there is or was potential for exposure to fluorocherni ,r w* ^ y/.V.'J r " : Review the medical records of all such persons still employed by Du Pont, looking for consistent or unusual health occurrences or trends. Obtain blood fluorochemical levels on persons who have never had potential for occupational exposure to fluorochemicals to establish background levels for a baseline. These tests can be obtained on Wilmington office employees as a part of the periodic physical examinations given in the Nemours Medical facility. j' 1 .. Obtain blood fluorochemical levels on representative employees with various potentials for exposures to various fluorochemicals. If this is done at the same EID080239 000133T H E R E 'S A W ORLD OF T H IN G S W E ARE" DOING S O M ETH IN G AB O U T -2 - time as the employee's periodic physical examination, a comprehensive examination should be done with careful documentation of the results. A urine specimen should *be-- obtained for late_r_^analysi s for-- fluorochemical level! in__the--event-- the--blood-- 1-evel-- is--markedly elevated^ ' 6 Review the physical findings of the workers examined for consistent or unusual health occurrences or trends. When such occurrences or trends are found and appear to be significant, consideration should be given to conducting similar physical and blood examinations on non-exposed controls for comparison. 7 . If the period of potential exposure has been of sufficient duration and there is a sufficient number of employees, an epidemiologic study of the mortality of w - rJl the cohort identified may be considered. A determina-. JtA tion can be made of the likelihood of having a mean- f oh{y ingful study after the number of previously exposed Wui<|Jj w* h y employees is determined. O f ti.ji'j Medical Division recommends proceeding with this study in order as presented. However, we will need at least two days to obtain proper supplies and inform our technicians of the study and how to discuss the study with the employees. BWK/ag MEDICAL DIRECTOR EID080240 000134