59 lines
3.6 KiB
Plaintext
59 lines
3.6 KiB
Plaintext
The following question and answer might be of value to some of your users
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DEAR SIR.
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I WORK FOR ONE THE THE LARGE ELECTRONICS COMPANY'S HERE IN THE
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VALLEY. I WORK AROUND VERY HAZARDIS CHEMICALS SOME KNOWN TO ME
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AS E-6, HF. I ALSO WORK AROUND RF. EVERY DAY WHILE IN WORK MY
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EYES WATER, BURN, I HAVE TO BLINK VERY OFTEN TO KEEP MY EYES FROM
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FALLING OUT. PEOPLE AROUND ME ASK WHY I BLINK AND SWINT SO MUCH. I ONLY
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DO THIS AT WORK DURING MY 8 HR SHIFT. COULD THIS HAVE TO DO WITH THE
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WORK AREA. ALSO I WORK UNDER YELLOW LIGHTS ALL DAY AT WORK ALSO.
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Various chemicals have, from time to time, been implicated in causing
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irritation of the eyes. Solvent fumes such as E-6 and etchants such as HF
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are known cuses of this problem. The fumes of HydroFlouric acid combine
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with water to form a very caustic solution which is strong enough to etch
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glass. Solvents, especially degreasers, can alter the tear film layer of
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the eye by dissolving out the lipid component of tears. When the lipid
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(fat) portion of tears is reduced, the eyes will feel dry and more tearing
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results. These tears will also be acted upon by the solvent and the cycle
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will continue. Immediate treatment of such cases is removal from the
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causative environment. The symptoms are treated with artificial tear agents
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which act to stabilize the tear layer allowing the eye to come back to
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normal. The accompanying blood vessel reaction is treated with an anti-
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inflammatory agent which also acts to reduce the cellular response which
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resembles an "allergic" reaction. Generally relief is immediate but the
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total response time depends upon the duration and amount of exposure.
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Continued exposure can lead to the usual signs and symptoms of chronic
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contact reactions with the appearence of scarring, pterygia formation,
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thickened lids and drying of the skin. Continued tearing leads to glare
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and to skin irritation. Atopic dermatitis is sometimes seen in severe
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cases and sensitization of the eyes to other chemicals can occur.
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The eye is not the only part of the body to be involved. The mucous
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membranes of the mouth and nose as well as the lining of the air passages
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and lungs are also reacting to this insult. Some of this material will
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find passage into the circulation as well and thereby affect distant,
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internal organs. The information on such dispersal is not great. In short,
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not much is known. To respect the unknown is prudent and a survival trait
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of great value.
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OSHA has very clear guidelines to the safety levels of such chemicals
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however, these reccomendations are general and do not take into
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consideration individual sensitivity. The wearing of contact lenses in
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such an environment and under such circumstances is not reccomended.
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Electronics fabrication facilities, especially those involved in
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manufacturing circuit boards use a variety of exotic solvents. This fact
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coupled with the fumes from fluxes and soldering makes such an area a
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real eye hazard. It is becoming readily apparent, that while the human
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animal is very adaptable and hard to destroy, there is a limit to the
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toxicity levels that can be tolerated. We continue to produce "aerosols"
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of increasing toxicity with no thought to their longterm effects.
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"Guidelines" from OSHA and others not-with-standing, the levels set as safe
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are far to high. My advice to the questioner is to demand transfer to a
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healthier portion of the plant.
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