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J.
Ehlers, H. Venable, K. Wallingford, D. Roberts, D. Booher,
R. Chapman, M. Kahle and W. Kuhse
NIOSH Education and Information Division
Five
farmers were poisoned with carbon monoxide (CO) when using
gasoline-powered pressure-washers inside animal buildings
on Iowa farms between January, 1992 and January, 1993. Three
victims were overcome after only 1/2 hour of washer operation.
A 35-year-old man died and a 12-year-old boy was hospitalized
for hyperbaric oxygen treatment. Carboxyhemoglobin levels
were elevated in all cases where blood levels were available.
Since the original investigation, additional cases of CO poisoning
related to pressure washers have been reported to the OHNAC
project. Of the total of 18 cases, 12 occurred while cleaning
swine buildings, 2 in dairy operations, and 4 during flood
clean-up. In each of the incidents identified, victims had
brought the four to thirteen horsepower machines indoors.
Poisonings occurred in several cases even though doors and
windows were left open. Most of the victims were unaware that
there was a significant risk of CO poisoning when using pressure
washers. In field investigations, the National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) measured the generation of CO by a GPP washer under environmental conditions comparable
to those experienced by the cases in this report.
CO can
build up rapidly and overcome workers without warning symptoms.
When not fatal, CO poisoning can cause permanent brain damage.
The number of swine farmers using pressure washers is probably
increasing.
Based
on our investigation, we concluded that, in many work environments,
including agriculture, there may be no practical means to
determine whether ventilation is adequate for safe operation
of small engines indoors. Therefore, even brief indoor use
of GPP washers is hazardous (CDC, October 15, 1993). When
used to clean buildings, gasoline-powered machines should
be placed outside and only the hoses brought inside. Furthermore,
we concluded that information about the hazard needs to be
disseminated to anyone concerned with the manufacture, distribution,
and operation of this type of equipment.
This
problem was identified through Occupational Health Nurses
in Agricultural Communities (OHNAC), a national surveillance
program conducted by NIOSH that has placed public health nurses
in rural communities and hospitals in 10 states to conduct
surveillance of agriculture-related illnesses and injuries
that occur among farmers and their family members. OHNAC surveillance
data are used to assist in the reduction of occupational illness
and injury in agricultural populations.
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and Reproduction Information: Information in NASD does not
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NASD Review: 04/2002
This
research abstract was extracted from a portion of the proceedings
of "Agricultural Safety and Health: Detection, Prevention
and Intervention," a conference presented by the Ohio State
University and the Ohio Department of Health, sponsored by
the Centers for Disease Control/National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health.
J.
Ehlers, H. Venable, K. Wallingford, D. Roberts, D. Booher,
NIOSH, Cincinnati, OH; R. Chapman, M. Kahle, W. Kuhse, Iowa
Dept. of Public Health, Des Moines, IA.
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