Formaldehyde skin toxicity

LLDPE can present a certain health hazard when it bums, since smoke, fumes, and toxic decomposition products are sometimes formed in the process. Exposure to burning LLDPE can cause irritation of the skin, eyes, and mucous membranes of the nose and throat due to the presence of acrolein and formaldehyde (81). Toxicity of LLDPE pyrolysis products depends on temperature, heating rate, and the sample size (82—84). 

Intoxication may present as inebriation and drowsiness similar to ethanol use. Other symptoms are vomiting, diarrhea, delirium and agitation, back and abdominal pain, and clammy skin. Toxic effects usually follow a latent period of several hours. Formate inhibits mitochondrial cytochromes resulting in neurotoxicity. Ocular signs include blurred vision, dilated pupils, and direct retinal toxicity with optic disc hyperemia and ultimately permanent blindness [91]. Cerebral hemorrhagic necrosis has been reported [92]. Severe poisoning may result in Kussmaul respiration, inspiratory apnea, coma, and death. Urine samples may have the characteristic smell of formaldehyde. An elevated serum osmolal gap from methanol will be evident early in presentation but may disappear after approximately 12 hours. At this time, an elevated anion gap metabolic acidosis from retained formate may be evident. 

Caution. Hydrofluoric acid and formaldehyde are toxic and cause severe skin (HF) and eye (HF and HCHO) burns. Protective gloves and goggles should be worn, and the synthesis should be carried out in a well-ventilated fume hood. 

Most antibacterial bar soaps contain triclocarban as the active ingredient. In the past, antibacterial bar soaps were also formulated with formaldehyde. These were very effective for hospital use, but skin toxicity and irritation were very high. 

Toxic chemicals can enter the body in various ways, in particular by swallowing, inhalation and skin absorption. Skin absorption may lead to dermatitis and this can be a most annoying complaint. Whereas some chemicals may have an almost universal effect on human beings, others may attack only a few persons. A person who has worked with a given chemical for some years may suddenly become sensitised to it and from then on be unable to withstand the slightest trace of that material in the atmosphere. He may as a result also be sensitised not only to the specific chemical that caused the initial trouble but to a host of related products. Unfortunately a number of chemicals used in the plastics industry have a tendency to be dermatitic, including certain halogenated aromatic materials, formaldehyde and aliphatic amines. 

Formaldehyde has been rated as a possible carcinogen by the United States Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) rules and should be handled with due caution. It is also a strong lacrymator and choking respiratory irritant. It irritates the skin, eyes, and mucous membranes [76]. Since it is used for tanning leather, it is obvious that fonnaldehyde has a high potential for reactions with proteins. Formaldehyde gas is flammable and most formalin solutions contain significant amounts of methanol, which is also volatile, toxic, and flammable. 

Its toxicity is discussed by Curme Johnston (Ref 4, p 317). In skin absorption it is about l/l0th as toxic as formaldehyde The industrial utilization of glyoxal is largely based on the advantage which may be taken of its two aldehyde groups, its lack of volatility from aqueous solns, and its inoffensive color. Among its uses may be cited in-solubilizing of proteins, polyvinyl, alcohol, starch, etc (Ref 4, p 127) (See also Ref 5). 

DOT CLASSIFICATION 4.1 Label None SAFETY PROFILE Moderately toxic by ingestion, A severe eye and skin irritant. Mutation data reported. Flammable when exposed to heat or flame can react with oxidizing materials. To fight fire, use alcohol foam, CO2, dry chemical. Incompatible with liquid oxygen. Dangerous when heated to decomposition it emits toxic formaldehyde gas. See also FORMALDEHYDE. 

The minimum amount of formaldehyde that can be detected by odor varies considerably between individuals and ranges from 0.1 to 1.0 ppm (0.12-1.2 mg/m ), close to the concentration at which minimal irritant effects are felt in the eyes and in the pulmonary airways (3). Thus, the fundamental toxicity of formaldehyde lies in primary irritation to the eyes, nose, and throat when the subject is exposed to concentrations in the range of 1-5 ppm. Concentrations above 2-5 ppm cause irritation of the pharynx, lungs, and eyes, and some erythema of vaporized areas of the skin, such as the face and neck. Acute exposure to concentrations of formaldehyde of the order of three times the maximum threshold of detection of the... 

Its toxicity is discussed by Curme Johnston (Ref 4, p 317). In skin absorption it is about l/lOth as toxic as formaldehyde... 

The toxicity of formaldehyde is related to its metabolic products and, as a result, individual variability in metabolism will determine toxic outcomes. Human ingestion of 118 ml of formaldehyde was fatal in some cases but not others. Systemic acidosis may appear upon ingestion along with corrosion and hemorrhaging of the digestive tract. Allergic sensitization may occur after exposure. This may lead to contact dermatitis after subsequent skin exposure, as well as asthmatic attack upon inhalation exposure. Inhalation may also result in irritation of the respiratory tract and pulmonary edema. 

Formaldehyde is a major contributor to many cases of sick building syndrome. It is a very toxic chemical that is corrosive to the skin, eyes, and the respiratory system. Acute or chronic exposure can result in difficulty breathing and even brief exposures can induce asthmatic reactions in sensitized individuals. 13 Exposures to mixtures of formaldehyde and lipophilic chemicals can result in unanticipated toxic effects. 14 Formaldehyde is an animal carcinogen, a suspected human nasal cancer carcinogen 29 and suspected human leukemogen. 3°1... 

Formaldehyde can enter your body after you breath it in, drink or eat it, or when it comes in contact with your skin. Formaldehyde is quickly absorbed from the nose and the upper part of your limgs. When formaldehyde is eaten and drunk, it is also very quickly absorbed. Very small amounts are probably absorbed from formaldehyde that comes in contact with your skin. Once absorbed, formaldehyde is very quickly broken down. Almost every tissue in the body has the ability to break down formaldehyde. It is usually converted to a non-toxic chemical called formate, which is excreted in the urine. Formaldehyde can also be converted to carbon dioxide and breathed out of the body. It can also be broken down so the body can use it to make larger molecules needed in your tissues, or it can attach to deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) or to protein in your body. Formaldehyde is not stored in fat. 

No evidence for formaldehyde-induced effects on the skin has been reported in intermediate-duration inhalation studies with rats, hamsters. Rhesus monkeys, or mice (Appelman et al. 1988 Maronpot et al. 1986 Monticello et al. 1989 Woutersen et al. 1987), or in chronic inhalation studies with rats or mice (Kamata et al. 1997 Kems et al. 1983b), except that the highest concentration used in these studies (40 ppm used in the 13-week mouse study by Maronpot et al. 1986) produced severe clinical signs of toxicity in mice including mouth breathing, ataxia, and loss of skin elasticity . 

Studies of animals exposed to formaldehyde in air, in drinking water or diet, or applied to the skin indicate that the reproductive organs are not a critical target for formaldehyde toxicity, but comprehensive assessments of reproductive performance (e.g., 2-generation studies) in formaldehyde-exposed animals were not located. 

As discussed in the Identification of Data Needs section for intermediate-duration exposure, additional animal studies comparing exposure-response relationships for skin irritation for acute- intermediate- and chronic-exposure durations would be useful in estimating concentrations of formaldehyde solutions that will not damage the skin with repeated exposures. Although no comprehensive toxicity studies in animals were located regarding chronic dermal exposure, understanding of formaldehyde toxicokinetics and mechanism of action suggests that distant-site toxicity is not a concern at environmentally or occupationally relevant dermal exposure levels. 

Methods of Reducing Toxic Effects. Due to formaldehyde s high water solubility and reactivity and the rapidity of cellular metabolism of formaldehyde to formate and CO2, toxic effects from formaldehyde are expected to be principally caused by fonnaldehyde itself (not metabolites) and to be restricted to portal-of-entry tissues, except at high exposure levels that exceed metabolic capacities of these tissues. Thus, following acute exposures to formaldehyde, treatments that dilute or remove non-absorbed or non-reacted formaldehyde from the site of exposure or that present alternative substrates for reaction (e.g., washing of the skin or eyes or dilution of ingested fonnaldehyde with milk or water) may prevent the occurrence of toxic effects if applied in a timely manner. Methods that may enhance the capacity of portal-of-entry tissues to metabolize fonnaldehyde may be expected to act against the toxic action of formaldehvde, but no such methods have been established. Tliere are no established treatment... 

Niyato-Shirkhodaee F, Shibamoto T. 1992. In vitro determination of toxic aldehydes formed from the skin lipid, triolein, upon ultraviolet irradiation Formaldehyde and acrolein. J Toxicol Cutaneous Ocul Toxicol 11 285-292. 

It is possible that a chemical is toxic only by one route of entry. Such example is formaldehyde, which is a carcinogen only if inhaled. On the contrary, arsenic is toxic by all three routes skin absorption, ingestion and... 

Antidotes can change the chemical nature of a poison by rendering it less toxic or preventing its absorption. Formaldehyde poisoning can be treated with ammonia to promote formation of hexamethylenetetramine sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate can convert mercuric ion to the less soluble metallic mercury and sodium bicarbonate converts ferrous iron to ferrous carbonate, which is poorly absorbed. Chemical inactivation techniques seldom are used today, however, because valuable time may be lost, whereas emetics, activated charcoal, and gastric lavage are rapid and effective. The treatment of choice for ingestion of either acids or alkalis is dilution with water or milk. Similarly, bums produced by acid or alkali on the skin should be treated with copious amounts of water. 

Methyl alcohol (methanol, wood alcohol [CAS 67-56-1]) Mildly Irritating to eyes and skin. Systemic toxicity may result from absorption by all routes. Toxic metabolites are formate and formaldehyde. A CNS depressant. Signs and symptoms Include headache, nausea, abdominal pain, dizziness, shortness of breath, metabolic acidosis, and coma. Visual disturbances (optic neuropathy) range from blurred vision to blindness. See also p 260. 

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