Workers in industries that produce, use, or dispose of Stoddard solvent are at the greatest risk of exposure.
The most significant exposures to Stoddard solvent occur in the workplace. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) estimates that about 2 million U.S. workers (excluding military personnel) were potentially exposed to Stoddard solvent from 1981 to 1983. Today, Stoddard solvent is used primarily by workers in the manufacturing industry (for degreasing), paint industry, and printing industries. Exposure to Stoddard solvent is of greatest concern when it is used without skin or respiratory protection and in poorly ventilated areas.
The general population can be exposed to Stoddard solvent through contact with consumer cleaning agents, paint products, or dry-cleaned fabrics.
The odor threshold for Stoddard solvent is less than 1 part per million (ppm). However, after about 6 minutes, the olfactory sense fatigues, and Stoddard solvent is no longer detected by smell. Thus, odor is not a reliable indicator of exposure and may not provide adequate warning of dangerously high concentrations. Olfactory detection of Stoddard solvent returns after breathing fresh air for about 10 minutes.
Although Stoddard solvent may contaminate the environment via air, water, or soil, no human health effects from chronic exposure to low environmental levels have been reported.
Populations susceptible to Stoddard solvent toxicity include persons who are overexposed (because of inadequate ventilation or lack of skin or respiratory protection), persons with concurrent exposures to solvents that are similarly metabolized, or persons with a lowered threshold for toxicity. Stoddard solvent is probably metabolized in the liver; thus, preexisting liver disease (e.g., hepatitis or cirrhosis) would likely decrease the rate of metabolism and increase the amount of Stoddard solvent circulating in the blood. Because excretion probably occurs through the lungs and kidneys, persons with lung impairment (e.g., chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [COPD]) or renal insufficiency may retain Stoddard solvent or its metabolites, leading to an increased risk of toxicity.
The patient brings you a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the degreasing solution he used on his car. The MSDS identifies the degreaser as Stoddard solvent. The patient also tells you that he has brought the solution home. He stores it in a gallon jug in the basement and uses it occasionally to help his children clean their bicycles.
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The patient asks you whether these exposures to Stoddard solvent could be harmful to his children. What will you tell him?
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