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Dust entry

Paper dust

Airborne cellulose particulate generated during paper handling and newspaper production.

Airborne form

dust

The form describes what is suspended in air at the point of exposure. A material can produce more than one form, such as dust during handling and fume during heating.

Health effects

eye irritationnose and throat irritationchronic-bronchitis symptoms concernpulmonary-function concerndermatitis

Evidence

A NIOSH newspaper-production HHE measured paper dust and found significantly higher chronic-bronchitis symptom rates among press-room workers than reel-room workers; it also reported reduced pulmonary-function performance with age and years of press work and dermatitis/eye irritation associated with oil mist and paper dust. The report did not establish an independent paper-dust effect.

Source: pdf ↗ · saved source
page 1 · Summary · 3
A respiratory symptom questionnaire and pulmonary function tests were administered to 187 workers. Press room workers were found to have a significantly higher rate of chronic bronchitis symptoms than reel room workers after adjusting for smoking history and age. Pulmonary function performance declined with age and years of press work, but these variables were so closely correlated that an independent effect for years of exposure could not be evaluated. Dermatitis and eye irritation due to oil mist and paper dust exposure were reported by 40% of the workers.

A NIOSH pulp-and-paper HHE states that the cellulose paper-dust REL is based on eye and skin irritation and explains that inhalation of contaminated paper dust could be a route for exposure to dioxins and furans; this is a contaminant-exposure context, not a finding that all paper dust contains dioxins.

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page 9 · Paper Dust; Industrial Hygiene · 1–2
The NIOSH REL for cellulose (paper dust) is 10 mg/m3 (total dust) and 5 mg/m3 (respirable dust) as a full-shift time-weighted average. The REL is based on eye and skin irritation. ... Because dioxins and furans have very low vapor pressures, most respiratory exposures would probably occur as a result of inhalation of contaminated paper dust. Work areas with the highest concentrations of airborne paper dust (and to a lesser extent, bleached pulp mist or dust) would likely have the greatest potential for inhalation exposure to PCDDs and PCDFs.

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