Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 1981;49(1):67-75.
doi: 10.1007/BF00380810.

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

P L Kalliomäki, E Rahkonen, V Vaaranen, K Kalliomäki, K Aittoniemi

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

P L Kalliomäki et al. Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 1981.

Abstract

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.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 1980;47(1):35-45 - PubMed
    1. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1977 Mar;3(1):28-31 - PubMed
    1. Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 1979 Apr 20;43(2):85-91 - PubMed
    1. Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 1979 Apr 20;43(2):123-33 - PubMed
    1. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1978 Jun;4(2):122-30 - PubMed