Objective To investigate the formaldehyde exposure level and varied exposure patterns of medical personnel at pathology departments of general hospitals.
Methods Air samples were collected from three categories of work stations including biopsy rooms, technology rooms, and diagnosis rooms in pathology departments of six general hospitals in Jinan City. The samples were tested and assessed for formaldehyde. Formaldehyde control measures installed in selected work stations such as mechanical ventilation and personal protective equipment were also investigated.
Results The average formaldehyde concentration in the biopsy rooms (1.40mg/m3) was higher than those in the other work stations and exceeded the national occupational exposure limit (maximum allowable concentration, 0.5 mg/m3). The concentrations in the technology rooms (0.17 mg/m3) and the diagnosis rooms (0.13 mg/m3) were lower than the national occupational exposure limit. There were significant differences in the formaldehyde concentrations in the same work station category among the six hospitals and among the work station categories (both P<0.01). Two formaldehyde peak values in the biopsy rooms were observed at 10:00 and 14:00, which were 1.52mg/m3 and 1.87mg/m3 respectively. Only two out of the six hospitals installed local mechanical ventilation systems in the biopsy rooms.
Conclusion Biopsy rooms in pathology departments of general hospitals present the most severe formaldehyde pollution and should be the key place for formaldehyde pollution remediation. Tasks, workload, and usage of ventilation facilities might be the possible factors affecting the pollution concentrations.
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