TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR CHROMIUM - Davidborowski.com

CHROMIUM 602. HEALTH EFFECTSfound among 1,422 "early" and "prechange" workers. No excess of lung cancer deaths was found among677 "postchange" workers (O/E=14/13.7, SMR 102, not significant), but the possibility of an increasedrisk in "postchange" workers cannot be ruled out without further follow-up. In the "early" workers, therisk affected men who were employed for $2 years and was higher for those who worked for $10 years(SMR=225). Men in jobs with the highest exposure to chromate had higher risks (O/E=151/61.73,SMR=245) than workers with less exposure (O/E=21/19.57, SMR=107) (Davies et al. 1991). In thesereports, reliable smoking data were not available, and exposure concentrations were not reported.However, an independent analysis of workroom levels of chromium in the three chromate productionfactories in the United Kingdom performed around 1950 indicated average levels for various phases in theprocess ranging from 0.0006 to 2.14 mg chromium(III)/m 3 and from 0.002 to 0.88 mg chromium(VI)/m 3(Buckell and Harvey 1951). The importance of further follow-up of the cohort to confirm that the riskhas declined with improvements in the working environment, of simultaneous analysis of such factors asage, duration of employment, and time since first exposure, and of examining smoking habits wasemphasized (Davies et al. 1991).The incidence of mortality due to lung cancer in two chromate production plants in the Federal Republicof Germany was examined in relation to changes in operations and industrial hygiene over the years. Thecohort consisted of 1,140 workers who were employed for at least 1 year from before 1948 to 1979. Forrespiratory cancer, O/E=21/10.93, SMR=192 at one plant and O/E=30/13.41, SMR=224 at the other.Analysis of SMRs over 5-year periods revealed a progressive decline at both plants (Korallus et al. 1982).Studies of chromate production workers have also been conducted in Japan and Italy. Among544 workers at a small chromate producing factory in Japan, which had operated from 1936 to 1973,14 cases of lung cancer were diagnosed or reported on death certificates. An excess risk of 657.9 per100,000 was calculated and compared with a death rate from bronchial carcinoma of 13.3 per 100,000 inJapan in 1975 (Ohsaki et al. 1978). In a mortality and morbidity study of 896 men (including 120deceased previously) engaged in the manufacture of chromium compounds in Japan for at least 1 yearduring 1918–1975 and followed until 1978, SMRs were significant only for lung cancer (O/E=26/2.746,SMR=950). Deaths from all respiratory cancers increased with increased length of engagement inchromium work. The overall risk for respiratory cancer for the period from 1950–1978 wasO/E=31/3.358 (SMR=923). The 31 cases included 25 cases of lung cancer, 5 cases of maxillary sinuscancer, and 1 case of nasal cavity cancer. No increased risk of death due to cancer of other organs,particularly the stomach or liver, was found (Satoh et al. 1981). A survey of 85 men who worked in theproduction of dichromate and chromium trioxide for at least 1 year from 1938 to 1953 in a facility in Italy