Evaluation of tremolite asbestos exposures associated with the use of commercial products

Tremolite is a noncommercial form of amphibole mineral that is present in some chrysotile, talc, and vermiculite deposits. Inhalation of asbestiform tremolite is suspected to have caused or contributed to an increased incidence of mesothelioma in certain mining settings; however, very little is know...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Critical reviews in toxicology 2012-02, Vol.42 (2), p.119-146
Main Authors: Finley, Brent L., Pierce, Jennifer S., Phelka, Amanda D., Adams, Rebecca E., Paustenbach, Dennis J., Thuett, Kerry A., Barlow, Christy A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aluminum Silicates - analysis
Aluminum Silicates - toxicity
amphibole
Animals
Asbestos
Asbestos, Amphibole - analysis
Asbestos, Amphibole - toxicity
Asbestos, Serpentine - analysis
Asbestos, Serpentine - toxicity
Biological and medical sciences
Chemical and industrial products toxicology. Toxic occupational diseases
chrysotile
cleavage fragments
effect level
exposure assessment
Humans
Incidence
Inorganic dusts (pneumoconiosises) and organic dusts (byssinosis etc.)
joint compound
Lung Neoplasms - chemically induced
Lung Neoplasms - epidemiology
Medical sciences
mesothelioma
Mesothelioma - chemically induced
Mesothelioma - epidemiology
Occupational Diseases - chemically induced
Occupational Diseases - epidemiology
Occupational Exposure - analysis
Risk Assessment
talc
Talc - analysis
Talc - toxicity
thetford chrysotile mines
Toxicity Tests - methods
Toxicology
tremolite
vermiculite
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Summary:Tremolite is a noncommercial form of amphibole mineral that is present in some chrysotile, talc, and vermiculite deposits. Inhalation of asbestiform tremolite is suspected to have caused or contributed to an increased incidence of mesothelioma in certain mining settings; however, very little is known about the magnitude of tremolite exposure that occurred at these locations, and even less is known regarding tremolite exposures that might have occurred during consumer use of chrysotile, talc, and vermiculite containing products. The purpose of this analysis is to evaluate the exposure-response relationship for tremolite asbestos and mesothelioma in high exposure settings (mining) and to develop estimates of tremolite asbestos exposure for various product use scenarios. Our interpretation of the tremolite asbestos exposure metrics reported for the Thetford chrysotile mines and the Libby vermiculite deposits suggests a lowest-observed-adverse-effect level (LOAEL) for mesothelioma of 35-73 f/cc-year. Using measured and estimated airborne tremolite asbestos concentrations for simulated and actual product use, we conservatively estimated the following cumulative tremolite asbestos exposures: career auto mechanic: 0.028 f/cc-year; non-occupational use of joint compound: 0.0006 f/cc-year; non-occupational use of vermiculite-containing gardening products: 0.034 f/cc-year; home-owner removal of Zonolite insulation: 0.0002 f/cc-year. While the estimated consumer tremolite exposures are far below the tremolite LOAELs derived herein, this analysis examines only a few of the hundreds of chrysotile- and talc-containing products.
ISSN:1040-8444
1547-6898
DOI:10.3109/10408444.2011.636028