P.D. Siegel, S. Short, W. Jones, D.M.
Lewis, B. Ducatman, E.A. Ronk, T. Bledsoe, B. Husberg,
E. Jennison, E. Janotkova, J. Mull, T.A. Shahan, N.H. Al-Humadi,
D. Freeland, J. Odencrantz and E.L. Petsonk
NIOSH Education and Information Division
Rhinitis
has been commonly noted before or in conjunction with the
development of asthma. Events that occur in the nose prior
to, or following, the development of asthma may provide useful
information pertaining to the etiology of the disease. To
this end, we have developed and evaluated a human nasal lavage
(NL) methodology that is suitable for use in field studies
of asthma. Anterior nares of each subject were lavaged by
refluxing buffered saline, warmed to 37°C, 3x/nare with
a syringe catheter apparatus. A pediatric chest percussor
was placed on the bridge of the nose during the lavage procedure.
Lavage was immediately placed on ice until centrifugation.
Cell-free lavage supernant fluid was collected, frozen, and
sent back to the lab where it was stored at -70°C. Cell-mucus
pellets were treated to break up the mucus, and preparations
were made for microscopic examination. Nasal lavage samples
from 40 subjects at one insectory and 23 from a second insectory
were collected and prepared for analysis in such a manner.
Eosinophil cationic protein (ECP), human serum albumin (HSA),
tryptase, prostaglandin D2 (PgD2), leukotriene C4 and cell
content were measured in the NL. Tumor necrosis factor could
not be detected in any of the samples. ECP, a granule associated
protein from the eosinophil, and HSA paralleled each other
(r=0.938 and 0.722 at each insectory). Insect scale was also
quantitated in the nasal lavage (up to 732 scale/NL) and proved
to be a good indicator of recent exposure. A nasal lavage
technique for animal models has also been developed in our
laboratory to complement the human studies. Nasal lavage in
the animal models have also demonstrated that the nose may
be useful as an environmental sampler for exposures such as
fiberglass and bedding. Guinea pig lungs and noses contained
13.5 ±2.5 x 106 fibers and 0.177 ±0.016 fibers/lavage,
respectively. By 18 hours after exposure, greater than 98%
of the fibers had been cleared from the nose, but no clearance
was seen from the lungs. Recent exposure history of a worker
that is more reliable than air samples can also be obtained
because sampling from the nose allows for personal habits
such as inconsistent use or misuse of respiratory protection.
Nasal lavage is a well-tolerated technique, applicable to
both field and laboratory studies. It can provide information
concerning both the health status and recent exposure history
of a worker.
Disclaimer
and Reproduction Information: Information in NASD does not represent
NIOSH policy. Information included in NASD appears by permission
of the author and/or copyright holder. More
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.
The
authors noted above are from: All from the Division of Respiratory
Disease Studies, NIOSH, Morgantown, WV.
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