NIOSH eNews - January, 2016 - Version 2

In This Issue

Director’s Desk NIOSH TWH™Director Talks With Working Capital Review NIOSH Division Associate Director Position Open NIOSH Occupational Research Noted in Harvard Study of Diacetyl, Other Flavorings in e-Cigarettes NIOSH Updates Software for Estimating Respirator Service Life Predictors of Adherence to Safe Handling Practices for Antineoplastic Drugs: A Survey of Hospital Nurses NIOSH Study Reveals Safety Issues in Long-haul Trucking Industry Health Hazard Evaluations (HHE) at Coffee Processing Facilities

Volume 13 Number 9 January 2016

Note to NIOSH eNews readers: This mailing of the January 2016 NIOSH eNews newsletter corrects some inadvertently erroneous links that were included in a previous version. If you retain each issue of eNews in a personal archive, please retain this version for the record and delete the previous version. Thank you. From the Director’s Desk John Howard, M.D., Director, NIOSH Preparing for Working In Cold Don’t assume there is no need to prepare for working safely in the cold this year, because of the moderate temperatures in much of the country so far. According tothe National Weather Service, the long-range weather forecast predicts chillier temperatures than average in January and February in the Southern Plains and the Southeast. Cold weather can bring on health emergencies for people who may be susceptible as a result of their working environment, such as those who work outdoors or in an area that is poorly insulated or without heat. Read More... NIOSH TWH™ Director Talks With Working Capital Review Working Capital Review, covering ideas that drive global business, sat down with Dr. Casey Chosewood, Director of NIOSH’s Office for Total Worker Health,™ during “Working Capital Conversations” in December. Dr. Chosewood spoke about the importance of making worker health and safety part of an ongoing business strategy. NIOSH Division Associate Director Position Open The NIOSH Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies has posted the open position of Associate Director for Science. Those who are interested can apply for the position as a GS-601/690-15 or Commissioned Officer, or physicians can apply as a medical officer (GS-602-15). The vacancy announcement will be open initially through January 4, but the application deadline will then be extended. NIOSH Occupational Research Noted in Harvard Study of Diacetyl, Other Flavorings in e-Cigarettes Pioneering NIOSH studies on the risk of the severe lung disease obliterative bronchiolitis associated with occupational exposures to flavorings were noted in a recent report by scientists at Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The scientists analyzed 51 types of flavored e-cigarettes for the flavorings diacetyl, 2’3-pentanedione, and acetoin. Their study, posted on December 8, 2015, by Environmental Health Perspectives ahead of publication, showed that 47 of the 51 products contained at least one of the three chemicals. “Due to the associations between diacetyl, bronchiolitis obliterans, and other severe respiratory diseases observed in workers, urgent action is recommended to further evaluate this potentially widespread exposure via flavored e-cigarettes,” the Harvard scientists recommended. NIOSH’s findings and recommendations on reducing the risk of obliterative bronchiolitis associated with occupational exposures to flavorings are available on its flavorings topic page. NIOSH Updates Software for Estimating Respirator Service Life The NIOSH MultiVapor™ tool has been updated and posted to the web. MultiVapor™ is a computer tool for estimating breakthrough times and service lives of air-purifying respirator cartridges for removing toxic organic vapors from breathed air. It can also be used for larger filters and for carbon beds of any size prepared for laboratory studies. MultiVapor™ 2.2.3 replaces the 2.1.3 version. Predictors of Adherence to Safe Handling Practices for Antineoplastic Drugs: A Survey of Hospital Nurses A new article by NIOSH researchers looks at predictors of adherence to recommended safe-handling practices for administration of antineoplastic drugs (ADs). The study analyzed survey responses from nurses at hospitals and found that training, familiarity with safe-handling guidelines, and availability of engineering controls and personal protective equipment (PPE) were associated with better adherence to safe-handling practices and with fewer reported spills of ADs. The study report will be published in the March issue of the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene and is now available online. NIOSH Study Reveals Safety Issues in Long-haul Trucking Industry New data from NIOSH highlights a number of important safety issues facing long-haul truck drivers (LHTDs) and their employers. The study, published in the December 2015 issue of the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention, is the first to describe truck crashes, work-related injuries, work environments, and driver training, attitudes, and behaviors.  See “NIOSH national survey of long-haul truck drivers: Injury and safety”. Health Hazard Evaluations (HHE) at Coffee Processing Facilities A severe lung disease called obliterative bronchiolitis occurred in five workers at a coffee processing facility that roasted, ground, and flavored coffee. Two of the cases were summarized in a Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (MMWR 62(16):304-307). NIOSH investigators recently published an article in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine about a health hazard evaluation at this facility (AJIM 2015;58(12):1235-1245). NIOSH is working with a number of coffee processing facilities through the HHE Program. NIOSH HHE investigators have developed a coffee processing webpage with interim recommendations; these recommendations may change as we learn more over the coming year.