Document jbJmEkJxwDxG76XjovxO5y1O

July ZO, 1953 Ingalls H. Simmons, Lt. Col., M. C. Chief, Preventive Medicine Division Headquarters Fifth Army 1660 East Hyde Park Boulevard Chicago '5, Illinois Dear Colonel Simmons: This is written in response to the request of Lt. Col. Gelperin, in a letter of July '7 (A.LFMD-PM), for information on the possibilities for injurious effects that reside in the exposure of men to dust and fume created in cutting and welding titanium. I know of no evidence that would lev i cue to belie/e that -here is any significant hacard in ?.n exposure of this type over considerable periods of time. I would not say that there is none, since I have had nc experi ence with exposure to the metal in the form c^dust or fume. Machle (in Wampler's book onJhdustrial Medicine, Williams and Wilkins, Baltimore 1943) has said thi-t "inhalation of the oxide has caused pul monary irritation in guinea pigs, M and there is a belief, which I have not seen confirmed, that sufficient exposure to the fumecouid give rise to metal fume fever, but there is nothing to indicate that the materials in common use as pigments are dangsrous in any way. I should think th it the situation which Lt. Col. Gelperin mentions, if it is sufficiently significant and persistent, would provide a very good opportunity to measure the extent of the exposure, to determine the nature (compound, size of particle) of the material dispersed in the atmosphere, and to establish by suitable clinical and laboratory examinations of personnel whether or not any hygienic problem exists. I don't know of cny work of this type that ha3 bean done to establish the positive or negative facts. Perhaps that is the reason for the almost complete lack of information about titanium in relation to human exposure. Cordially yours. RAK ef Robert A. Kehoe, M. D.