Woburn, Massachusetts

Respiratory Effects. One study suggested increased respiratory disorders (asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia) in children with chronic exposure to a solvent-contaminated water supply (Byers et al. 1988). Two municipal wells in eastern Woburn, Massachusetts, were found to contain several solvents including trichloroethylene (267 ppb) and tetrachloroethylene (21 ppb). The increased susceptibility to infection may be secondary to effects on the immune system. Accurate chemical-specific exposure levels for individuals could not be determined because the water distribution system was designed to use water from different wells at different rates and times. Other limitations of this study are described in Section 2.2.2.8. 

Dermal Effects. Some of the people in Woburn, Massachusetts, who had been chronically exposed to trace amounts of trichloroethylene and other substances in the drinking water reported skin lesions (Byers et al. 1988). These were maculopapular rashes that were said to occur approximately twice yearly and lasted 2-4 weeks. These skin conditions generally ceased 1-2 years after cessation of exposure to contaminated water. The limitations of this study are discussed in Section 2.2.2.8. A case study was published of a 63-year-old rural South Carolina woman exposed to trichloroethylene and other chlorinated hydrocarbons in her well water, who developed diffuse fascitis, although her husband did not (Waller et al. 1994). The level of trichloroethylene measured in the well water was 19 mg/L. Substitution of bottled water for drinking resulted in improved symptoms. 

Immunological abnormalities were reported in 23 adults in Woburn, Massachusetts, who were exposed to contaminated well water and who were family members of children with leukemia (Byers et al. 1988). These immunological abnormalities, tested for 5 years after well closure, included persistent lymphocytosis, increased numbers of T-lymphocytes, and depressed helper suppressor T-cell ratio. Auto-antibodies, particularly anti-nuclear antibodies, were detected in 11 of 23 adults tested. This study is limited by the possible bias in identifying risk factors for immunological abnormalities in a small, nonpopulation-based group identified by leukemia types. Other limitations of this study are described in Section 2.2.2.8. A study of 356 residents of Tucson, Arizona, who were exposed to trichloroethylene (6-500 ppb) and other chemicals in well water drawn from the Santa Cmz aquifer found increased frequencies of 10 systemic lupus erythematosus symptoms, 5 (arthritis, Raynaud s phenomenon, malar rash, skin lesions related to sun exposure, seizure or convulsions) of which were statistically significant (Kilbum and Warshaw 1992). 

Lagakos SW, Wessen BJ, Zelen M. 1986a. An analysis of contaminated well water and health effects in Woburn, Massachusetts. J Am Stat Assoc 81 583-596. 

Davis, A., Kempton, J.H., Nicholson, A. and Yare, B. (1994) Groundwater transport of arsenic and chromium at a historical tannery, Woburn, Massachusetts, USA. Applied Geochemistry, 9(5), 569-82. 

Elimelech, M., Gregory, J., Jia, X. and Williams, R.A. (1995) Particle Deposition and Aggregation Measurement, Modelling and Simulation, Butterworth-Heinemann, Woburn, Massachusetts. 

P-gp associated ATPase is vanadate sensitive. A membrane product prepared from baculovirus infected insect cells containing this activity is now commercially available from Gentest Corp. (Woburn, Massachusetts, U.S.). Substrates of P-gp, such as verapamil, have been demonstrated to stimulate this vanadate-sensitive membrane ATPase (123). By determination of inorganic phosphate liberated in the reaction containing a P-gp preparation and a test compound, in the presence and absence of vanadate, one can determine if the test compound is a substrate/inhibitor of P-gp (123,422). Any compound that binds to P-gp would stimulate the magnesium-dependent ATPase, and thus, this method cannot distinguish between a substrate and inhibitor of P-gp. 

The breakthrough came in 1839 while Goodyear was exhibiting his most recent samples at a general store in Woburn, Massachusetts. When he accidentally dropped a piece on a hot stove, it burned, but the uncharred part was transformed into a smooth, firm material that was not affected by high or low temperature. The additive in the sample was sulfur, but it took Goodyear several months to determine the right combination of heat, pressure, and sulfur to produce a stable compound. He found that the best material was produced when the compound was steam-heated under pressure at 120°C (248°F) for four to six hours. Its first commercial use was as elastic thread in men s shirts. 

Rogers CE, Tomita AV, Trowbridge PR, et al. 1997. Hair analysis does not support hypothesized arsenic and chromium exposure from drinking water in Woburn, Massachusetts. Environ Health Perspect 105(10) 1090-1097. 

Woburn, Massachusetts Arsenic compounds, heavy metals, organic chemicals Abandoned waste lagoon with multiple surface dumps Direct and waterborne contacts... 

Woburn, Massachusetts - An Example of Descriptive and Case-Control Studies... 

Rohm and Haas Company, Advanced Materials Division, Woburn, Massachusetts. www.cvdmaterials.com. 

V. Keramida and J. E. Etzel, Proc. 37th Ind. Waste Conf., Purdue Univ., 1982, Ann Arbor Sci., Woburn, Massachusetts, 1983, pp. 181-188. 

Woburn, Massachusetts. A nonuniform velocity distribution results in longitudinal dispersion of chemicals carried by the river, (b) Vertical velocity profile in the Aberjona River at the probe location. Velocity is highest at an intermediate depth, lower at the surface due to air resistance, and zero at the channel bottom [data from Solo-Gabriele (1995)]. 

Woburn, Massachusetts, was the location of a cluster of childhood leukemia from 1969-79J2 4l The cluster was associated with contaminated municipal well drinking water that contained the following chemicals ... 

Mayhew, D.A., Smith, S.H., Doyle, G.L., Kreuger, J.C., and Mellon, K.A.S., Dermal, eye and oral toxicologic evaluations of brass powder, fog oil, diesel fuel and their mixtures. Report AHJ-A172 198, Bioassay Systems Corporation, Woburn, Massachusetts, 1985. 

Hazardous waste sites affected the communities of Legler Township, New Jersey, and Woburn, Massachusetts, the latter being the basis of a movie and best-selling book (Harr 1995). In another case... 

Solvent exposures also can occur in environmental settings. Major oil spills can induce symptoms from both stress and solvent exposure (Lyons et al. 1999). The novel and movie A Civil Action (Harr 1995) portrays the effect of a trichloroethylene contamination on the community of Woburn, Massachusetts. Hundreds of such hazardous waste sites on the Environmental Protection Agency s National Priorities List contain solvents. Solvents constitute 6 of the 10 most common substances at these sites (Committee on Environmental Epidemiology 1991). 

Kraut A, Lilis R, Marcus M, et al Neurotoxic effects of solvent exposure on sewage treatment workers. Arch Environ Health 43 263-268,1988 Kukull WA, Larson EB, Bowen JD, et al Solvent exposure as a risk factor for Alzheimer s disease a case-control study. Am J Epidemiol 141 1059-1071, 1995 Labreche FP, Cherry NM, McDonald JC Psychiatric disorders and occupational exposure to solvents. British Journal of Industrial Medicine 49 820-825, 1992 Lagakos SW, Wessen BJ, Zelen M An analysis of contaminated well water and health effects in Woburn, Massachusetts. Journal of the American Statistical Association 81 583-596, 1986... 

After tri- (212 pg/L) and tetrachloroethylene (180 pg/L) were identified in the drinking water supply of two towns in Finland, the incidence rates of total cancer, liver cancer, non-Hodgkin s lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and leukemia were compared with the rest of the country (Vartianinen et al. 1993). No significant difference was found. This study is limited in that people who might not have been exposed were included in ihe exposed group, and it is not clear how long the people were exposed. The contamination was discovered in 1992, and new sources of drinking water were supplied shortly after the discovery. A controversial study of a population in Woburn, Massachusetts, reported a potential... 

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