Health Effects of Soldering

1
Health Effects of Soldering

• W. Smith Chandler, MD, MPH, MS

2
Toxicology

• All substances are poisons. There is none which
  is not a poison. The right dose distinguishes a
  poison from a remedy.
• Paracelsus

3
Dose-Response
4
Low Dose Exposures

• Subtle effects ignored
• IQ
• Personality
• Reproductive
• Latency periods complicate cause-effect
• No evidence of an effect
• ALARA

5
Solder

• Lead
• Cadmium
• Tin
• Bismuth
• Silver
• Antimony

6
Lead

• Ben Franklin
• Fetoprotection
• Half-life in blood, one month bone, 27 years

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Lead Levels

• PbB units-micrograms/dl
• 50-medical removal
• 30-adult symptoms
• 10-pediatric standard
• JLab-all below 10
• Marker for other exposures

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Lead Toxicity

• Can affect most organs
• Developing nervous system has no clear NOEL for
  IQ
• Adult nervous system
• Psychological effects reduced memory slowed
  responses at PbB 20-40
• Wrist and foot drop at higher levels

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Lead Toxicity, cont.

• Anemia
• Reduced kidney function
• Hypertension with no clear NOEL
• Reproductive effects in both sexes
• Reduced immune function
• Studied at levels of 20-85
• Increased colds flu reduced IgA

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Cadmium

• Itai Itai disease
• Carcinogenic
• Reduced brain function and intelligence
• Irreversible kidney damage in solderers
• Reduced lung function
• Testicular damage in animal studies

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Other Solder Metals

• Tin overexposure to inorganic is stannosis
  involves lung irritation
• Silver argyria, argyrosis, possible kidney
  effects
• Antimony numerous effects with uncertain
  dose-response including GI irritation and
  possible cancer
• Bismuth Pepto-bismol, tellurium breath

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Flux and Defluxers

• Terpenes taxol, menthol
• Halogenated solvents CNS depression (anesthetic
  gases), liver kidney damage
• Trichloroethylene
• Trichloroethane (methyl chloroform)
• Fluorides toothpaste
• Chlorides irritants

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Summary

• Numerous important toxicants
• Dose-response relationships are inconsistent
• Long term effects are nebulous
• Practice ALARA