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Biomedical subjects

K Kalliomäki

Publications and source records attributed to K Kalliomäki.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1997

Estimation of individual dust exposure by magnetopneumography in stainless steel production.

The objectives of the study were to measure the magnetic dust lung burden of workers in stainless steel production by magnetopneumography (MPG) and to investigate the relationship of the results with air-borne concentrations of dust, total and hexavalent chromium as well as urinary excretion of chromium. There were 128 workers from the chromite mine, sintering plant, ferrochrome smelter, stainless steel smelting shop, cold rolling mill and welding shop in the exposed groups and five persons from the office staff in the control group. The remanent magnetic field (RMF) in the lungs was slightly elevated among workers in the ferrochromium and steel smelting shops; the levels were, however, lower than those reported for welders earlier and those observed in the welding/repair shop. Workers in the mine, concentrator and sintering plants and in the cold rolling mill exhibited remanent magnetic fields comparable to the referents. There was a relationship between the RMF and the actual urinary chromium concentration. Miners and concentrator and sintering plant workers showed retarded relaxation rate (ReR) of the remanent magnetic field. However, the RMF of the first two of these groups were low (< 0.1 nT) and this made it difficult to measure the ReR accurately. The duration of exposure correlated weakly but significantly with the relaxation rate, while smoking was not related to it.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Kinetics of the metal components of intratracheally instilled stainless steel welding fume suspensions in rats.

The kinetics of iron, chromium, nickel, and cobalt from manual metal arc and metal inert gas stainless steel welding fumes were studied. Neutron activated welding fumes, in aqueous suspensions, were instilled intratracheally into rats. The follow up continued for up to 106 days. From both fumes, approximately 10% of the injection bolus was immediately lost into the gastrointestinal tract, to be recovered in the faeces within three days. Thereafter, a pronounced difference was seen in the kinetics of the two types of fumes. After the first day, chromium, nickel, and iron were lost from the lungs with half times of about 53, 49, and 73 days after exposure to MMA/SS fumes, whereas practically no loss could be seen in the metal components of the metal inert gas welding fumes within two months. The disposition of chromium from MMA/SS fumes closely resembled that of intratracheally instilled water soluble chromates. On the other hand, the disappearance of trivalent chromium from MIS/SS fumes was considerably slower than that of the practically water insoluble chromates, or even of trivalent chromium salts. Thus the physical characteristics of the fume appreciably affect the kinetics of the clearance of chromium compounds from the lungs.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Kinetics of nickel and chromium in rats exposed to different stainless-steel welding fumes.

The kinetics of nickel and chromium from welding fumes were studied in the rat. To study the retention, the duration of exposure was one hour per working day for one, two, three, and four weeks. For the clearance study the follow-up period after four weeks' exposure was 106 days. Multi-element chemical analysis of the fumes and dried lungs was done using instrumental neutron activation analysis, and the concentrations in the body fluids were determined by atomic absorption spectroscopy. The maximum lung retention of metal inert-gas (MIG) welding fumes was somewhat higher than that of manual metal arc (MMA) welding fumes. The estimated maximum concentrations in the lungs were 9.5 micrograms/g and 150 micrograms/g for nickel after four weeks' exposure to MMA and MIG welding fumes. The corresponding concentrations of chromium were 78 micrograms/g and 310 micrograms/g. The measured concentrations were lower, however. The amounts of nickel cleared from the lungs during the MMA and MIG exposures were 0.9 microgram and 8 micrograms. The corresponding amounts of chromium were 9.6 micrograms and 2 micrograms. Practically all of the lost metals were found in the urine, in which the excretion rates were 0.07 microgram/d (MMA) and 0.39 microgram/d (MIG) for nickel and 0.23 microgram/d (MMA) and 0.11 microgram/d (MIG) for chromium.

Aerosols↗
PubMed1983

Evaluation of biological monitoring among stainless steel welders.

Ten manual metal arc (MMA) high alloy stainless steel (SS) welders were studied during one week and the concentrations of chromium (Cr) and nickel (Ni) were determined in their urine and blood. Stationary and personal air samples were collected from the immediate work environment; they covered the entire work period. Spot urine samples were collected during the follow-up period. Whole blood and plasma samples were taken from the workers before and after one shift, and the retention rate of magnetic dust in the lungs was estimated with magnetopneumography. On the basis of the results, indices of short-term exposure to Cr and Ni were evaluated. Urinary Cr and Ni concentrations (corrected to creatinine) reflect both the body burden caused by long-term and short-term exposure to easily soluble fractions of these metals. The results indicated that the use of Cr and Ni urinary analyses as indices of short-term exposure is not as dependable as previously assumed. The Cr and Ni concentrations in whole blood and plasma did not correlate with the measured exposure, but the daily mean increase in the Cr concentration reflected exposure to total Cr and Cr(VI) very well. The large variation in the Cr concentration of the morning urine (0.01-2.7 mumol/1) and blood (0.05-1.43 mumol/1) indicated large personal variations of body burden among the exposed welders. The retention rate of magnetic dust in the lungs correlated well (P less than 0.01) with the daily mean increase of Cr in blood. Very good correlations (P less than 0.001) were found between the retention rate of magnetic dust and the personal air samples of Cr and Cr(VI).

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Retention and clearance of stainless steel shieldgas welding fumes in rat lungs.

The use of metal inert gas (MIG) stainless steel (SS) welding techniques is rapidly increasing. The possible health hazards of MIG/SS welding fumes are not known; more attention has been paid to manual metal arc (MMA) welding. In this study, 52 male Wistar rats were exposed to MIG/SS welding fumes generated by an automatic welding device for "nose only" exposure. For the retention study, the duration of exposure was one hour per workday for 1,2,3, and 4 weeks. For the clearance study, the duration was 4 weeks, and the follow-up period was 106 days. The retention and clearance of the alloyed metals of SS (chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni] and iron were studied in the rats' lungs, and the results were compared with the corresponding results of MMA/SS welding. The multielement chemical analysis was made using instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA); the concentration of exogeneous iron (Feex) was determined by a magnetic measuring method. Feex and Cr were retained in the ratio expected; Mn, Ni and total Fe were retained slower than expected. The total Fe did not clear at all even though Feex cleared with the half-time of 50 d which corresponded well with that of pure magnetite. The accumulation of Cr in the lungs was very high: it cleared with the half-time of 240 d. The clearance patterns of Mn and Ni were very similar. They followed a double exponential model with half-times of 2 d and 125 d for Mn, and 3 d and 85 d for Ni. The results indicated that even though the retention patterns for MMA and MIG welding fumes were very similar, the clearances differed very much.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Stainless steel manual metal arc welding fumes in rats.

Forty two male Wistar rats were exposed to manual metal arc (MMA) stainless steel (SS) welding fumes generated by an automatic welding device for "nose-only" exposure. The exposure simulated an actual MMA/SS welding environment as closely as possible. For the retention study, the duration of exposure was one hour per workday for one, two, three, of four weeks and for the clearance study four weeks. The retention and clearance of the chromium, nickel, and iron found in MMA/SS welding fumes in the rats' lungs were studied as was the distribution of the metals to other organs. Instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) was used for the multi-element chemical activation analyses. The concentrations of chromium and nickel in the blood and the urine were determined by atomic absorption method (AAS). The retention of exogenous iron was determined by a magnetic measuring method. The results indicated that the lungs were the target organs of soluble hexavalent chromates. The half times of lung clearance for Cr, Ni, and Fe were 40 +/- 4 d, 20 +/- d, and 50 +/- 10 d. When the lung clearance curves are compared, the half times of Cr and Fe lung clearance are similar but nickel disappears faster. The distribution and clearance patterns of chromium to other organs differ from those obtained after single intravenous or intratracheal injections of alkaline chromates.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

Respiratory status of stainless steel and mild steel welders.

Eighty-three full-time stainless steel and 29 mild steel welders from one shipyard were examined clinically, and their lung function was measured. The stainless steel welders had used both tungsten inert-gas (low-fume concentration) and manual metal-arc (MMA) (high-fume concentration) welding methods. The individual exposure of the welders was estimated based on the time spent doing MMA welding, the amount of retained contaminants in the lungs (magnetopulmography), and urinary chromium excretion. The results suggest that there is a greater prevalence of small airway disease among shipyard mild steel MMA welders than among stainless steel welders. Among the stainless steel welders the impairment of lung function parameters was associated with the MMA welding method. The type of welding, then, is important when the health hazards of welders are studied, and welders cannot be regarded as a single, homogeneous group.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Lung-retained contaminants, urinary chromium and nickel among stainless steel welders.

The magnetic method of measuring the amount of lung retained contaminants as well as urinary chromium and nickel determinations have been performed among 83 stainless steel (SS) welders who have used manual metal arc (MMA) and tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding techniques. The welders were divided into four groups according to the time percentage used for MMA welding. Only exposure to MMA/SS welding fumes resulted in clearly elevated chromium concentrations in the urine, the correlation coefficient between the values of urinary chromium and MMA/SS percentage being very significant (p less than 0.001). Among the smokers the urinary chromium values were increased (p less than 0.05) perhaps owing to contaminated cigarettes. In many workplaces the urinary chromium values of several welders exceeded the value of 30 microgram/l which is the recommended reference value in Finland. Owing to the solubility properties of nickel compounds in SS welding fumes urinary nickel concentrations were only slightly elevated among MMA/SS welders, and therefore, the urinary nickel determinations do not reflect the level of exposure to nickel compounds. The measured average remanent magnetic field of the chest area correlated well (p less than 0.01) with the use of the MMA technique. A very significant correlation (p less than 0.001) existed between the average remanent magnetic fields of the chest and the urinary chromium values of MMA/ss welders.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Measurement of lung-retained contaminants in vivo among workers exposed to metal aerosols.

In Finland the amount of lung-retained contaminants has been measured among welders, foundry workers, and iron and steel factory workers. About 300 subjects have so far been measured since 1976. The method of measuring is based on the magnetic properties of metal aerosols. At the very beginning the method resembled the one suggested by D. Cohen. The original method was too slow, and data processing was not suitable for clinical or hygienic work. Therefore, the automatic and computerized instrument for measuring lung-retained contaminants was developed in cooperation with Outokumpu Oy. The resolution of the magnetic measurement is better than 0.05 nT corresponding to a sensitivity of 0.5 mg of magnetic contaminants in the lung in the form of magnetite. These figures mean that, in practice, a shipyard welder has enough contamination for measurement after one month's exposure. In addition, the present paper reviews the magnetic properties of metal aerosols briefly and summarizes the results of measuring different occupational groups.

Aerosols↗