Ann Occup Environ Med.  2014 ;26(1):49-49. 10.1186/s40557-014-0049-5.

Acute liver injury in two workers exposed to chloroform in cleanrooms: a case report

• Kang YJ
• Ahn J
• Hwang YI

• KMID: 2153928
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1186/s40557-014-0049-5

Abstract

We report 2 cases of hepatotoxicity in cleanroom workers due to high retained chloroform air concentrations. The women, aged 34 and 41 years, who had been working in a medical endoscopic device manufacturer as cleanroom workers for approximately 40-45 days suffered severe liver damage. Two measured time-weighted averages of the chloroform concentration in the air in the cleanroom were 82.74 and 64.24 ppm, which are more than 6 times the legal occupational exposure limit in Korea. Only 7% of the cleanroom air was newly introduced from outside. The clinical courses of these cases and workplace inspection, led us to conclude that both cases of hepatotoxicity were caused by chloroform exposure.

Keyword

Chloroform; Trichloromethane; Liver toxicity; Toxic hepatitis; Cleanroom

MeSH Terms

Chloroform*
Drug-Induced Liver Injury
Female
Humans
Korea
Liver*
Occupational Exposure
Chloroform