Limonene is more likely to cause occupational asthma when oxidised

Limonene is a common additive to cleaning agents and metal-working fluids to improve their smell. Attempts to reproduce occupational asthma (demonstrated with whole work exposures)with challenges to limonene have been unsuccessful. This paper provides evidence that the hazard ratio (the liklihood of a chemical being a respiratory sensitiser) changes from low to high with some of the oxidation products of limonene, and provides a mechanism by which occupational asthma may be occuring, and a challenge as to how this can be reproduced in the challenge chamber.

References

	Frorester CD, Wells IR, Yields of Carbonyl Products from Gas-Phase Reactions of Fragrance Compounds with OH Radical and Ozone, Environ Sci Technol, 2009;43:3561-3568,

	Jarvis J, Seed MJ, Elton R, Sawyer L, Agius R, Relationship between chemical structure and the occupational asthma hazard of low molecular weight organic compounds, Occup Environ Med, 2005;62:243-250,

Comments

One product that should be watched with interest and considered for testing is a wall mounted dispenser of ozone and limonene that won an NHS innovation award see http://globalmedics.co.nz/aged-care/infection-control/air-disinfection-units/inov8-air-disinfection-wall-mounted-unit.html I doubt there is any health surveillance being done for staff?

11/26/2013