Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
to other copy pages. Printers use desensitizing inks to deactivate the devel-
oper coating to prevent printed materials from appearing on all copy forms.
i. Complaint/exposure investigations. A number of complaint/ex-
posure investigations of symptom outbreaks in office workers handling large
quantities of CCP forms in building environments have been conducted in
the last two decades. Reported symptoms have included itchy hand rashes,
headache, swollen eyelids, burning throat and tongue, fatigue, thirst, burn-
ing sensation on the face and forearms, nausea, eye irritation, dry throat,
sore/dry burning eyes, facial rash, burning sensation in the mouth, itching
eyes and nose, and hoarseness.
Symptom development associated with handling CCP appears to
depend on individual sensitivity (approximately 10% of individuals working
with CCP report symptoms) and the number of contacts, or the amount of
CCP handled, per day by an individual office worker. This relationship can
be seen for symptoms of rash, itching, and mucous membrane irritation in
A number of investigators have attempted to identify response patterns
to chemical components of CCP used in office environments, with mixed
results. Components identified as potential causal agents of one or more
symptoms have included free formaldehyde (HCHO); melamine HCHO;
resorcin; the dye, paratoluene sulfonate; alkyl phenol novalac resin; terphe-
nyls; and desensitizers. In response to health concerns associated with these
materials, some manufacturers have changed CCP formulations. Conse-
quently, substances such as Michler's hydrol of paratoluene sulfonate, HCHO,
and alkyl phenyl novolac are generally no longer used in CCP manufacture.
Cross-sectional epidemiological studies have identified handling CCP
as a risk factor for SBS-type symptoms. Handling CCP was observed to be
a risk factor for (1) mucous membrane and general symptoms (Danish
Figure 7.3
Carbonless copy paper exposure and symptom prevalence. (From
Menne, T. et al.,
Contact Derm
., 7, 72, 1981, © Munksgaard Int. Publ. Ltd. With
permission.)
