UNASSIGNED: A 40-year-old male patient joined an impregnated paper manufacturer and performed impregnation work using formaldehyde resin for 10 years and 2 months. In 2017, the patient experienced a severe headache and visited the hospital for brain magnetic resonance imaging, which revealed a mass. In the same year, the patient underwent a craniotomy for brain tumor resection and was diagnosed with glioblastoma of the temporal lobe. In 2019, a craniotomy was performed owing to the recurrence of the brain tumor, but he died in 2020. An exposure assessment of the work environment determined that the patient was exposed to formaldehyde above the exposure threshold of 0.3 ppm continuously for more than 10 years and that he had high respiratory and dermal exposure through performing work without wearing a respirator or protective gloves.
UNASSIGNED: This case report represents the first instance where the epidemiological investigation and evaluation committee of the Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute in Korea recognized the scientific evidence of work-related brain tumors due to long-term exposure to high concentrations of formaldehyde during impregnated paperwork. This case highlights the importance of proper workplace management, informing workers that prolonged exposure to formaldehyde in impregnation work can cause brain tumors and minimizing exposure in similar processes.
■一名40岁的男性患者加入了一家浸渍纸制造商,并使用甲醛树脂进行了10年零2个月的浸渍工作。2017年,患者出现严重头痛,到医院进行脑部磁共振成像,这揭示了一个质量。同年,患者接受了开颅手术切除脑肿瘤,并被诊断为颞叶胶质母细胞瘤。2019年,由于脑肿瘤复发,进行了开颅手术,但他在2020年去世了.对工作环境的暴露评估确定,患者在超过10年的时间内连续暴露于高于0.3ppm暴露阈值的甲醛,并且通过在不戴呼吸器或防护手套的情况下进行工作,他有高呼吸和皮肤暴露。
■本病例报告是韩国职业安全与健康研究所的流行病学调查和评估委员会首次认识到由于长期暴露于高浓度甲醛浸渍文书工作而导致的与工作有关的脑肿瘤的科学证据。这个案例突出了正确的工作场所管理的重要性,告知工人在浸渍工作中长时间暴露于甲醛会导致脑瘤,并在类似过程中尽量减少暴露。