TOPIC 7

TOPIC 7 : INDUSTRIAL
HYGIENE

General Approach to Control

(Biological Hazard)
 BIOLOGICAL HAZARDS
▪ A biological hazard or biohazard
o An organism, or substance derived from an
organism, that may present a potential risk to
(primarily) human health.
▪ A biohazards can affect humans either
▪ Directly through illness
▪ Indirectly through disruption of the
environment
▪ In Unicode, the biohazard sign is (☣).
BIOLOGICAL HAZARDS
 BIOLOGICAL HAZARDS
❖ Most of the identified biohazardous agents belong to:
▪ Plants – pollens, tree bark, leaves
▪ Animal – bites, infectious microorganism,
dander, venom
▪ Microorganisms/pathogen – virus, bacteria,
fungus, algae, protozoa
▪ Derivative substances – blood, body fluid,
tissue, clinical specimens, animal’s tissue
 BIOLOGICAL HAZARDS

Vibrio Cholerae Treponema Pallidum Chlamydomonas

Trichomonas
Vaginalis

Aspergillus
 BIOLOGICAL HAZARDS

▪ The effect of a biological agents depends on

o Number of organisms in the environment
o Virulence factor
o The resistance of the individual

▪ This effect are further compounded by the presence

of associated physical or chemical stressors in the
environment
 ROUTE OF TRANSMISSION

Inhalation
Injection
Ingestion
Contact through skin
 OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE

▪ Laboratory research – the most obvious workplace

▪ Hospitals – laundry, housekeeping, nursing, pharmacists,

physicians

▪ Agriculture – dealing with animals and crops

 CLASSIFICATION OF
BIOHAZARDOUS AGENT
 CLASSIFICATION

▪ The selection of an appropriate level is

dependent upon
o Virulence and Pathogenicity
o Biological stability and communicability of the
agent
o Availability of effective vaccines or therapeutic
measures.
o Availability of preventive measures
 CLASSIFICATION OF BIOLOGICAL AGENTS

• Class 1:

▪ No or low community risk

▪ Agents of no or minimal hazard that can be
handled safely without special apparatus or
equipment
▪ Includes all bacteria, fungal, viral, rickettsia and
parasites that are not includes in higher classes
 CLASSIFICATION OF BIOLOGICAL AGENTS

• Class 2:

▪ Moderate individual risk, low community risk

▪ Agent of ordinary potential hazard that may
produce disease of varying degrees of severity
▪ Organisms that cause only mild disease to humans,
or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab
setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A,
salmonella.
 CLASSIFICATION OF BIOLOGICAL AGENTS

• Class 3:

▪ High individual risk, low community risk

▪ Agents involving special hazard
▪ Pathogens require special conditions for containment
▪ Bacteria and viruses that can cause severe to fatal
disease in humans, but for which vaccines or other
treatments exist, such as anthrax, West Nile virus, SARS
virus, variola virus, tuberculosis, typhus, Rocky Mountain
spotted fever, yellow fever, and malaria.
 CLASSIFICATION OF BIOLOGICAL AGENTS

• Class 4:

▪ High individual and community risk

▪ Agent that require the most stringent conditions for
containment - extremely hazardous which can cause serious
epidemic disease
▪ Organisms that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and
for which vaccines or other treatments are not available,
such as H5N1(bird flu), dengue fever, Ebola virus, and
other hemorrhagic diseases.
▪ The use of HAZMAT suit and self-contained oxygen supply
is mandatory.
• Class 5:
• Only applicable in USA

• Foreign animal pathogens that are excluded from the US by

law or whose entry is restricted by the USDA administrative
policy.
BIOLOGICAL HAZARDS
MANAGEMENT
 BIOHAZARDS SAFETY

❖ Biohazards safety principles:

▪ Safety and health committee – supervise the

lab procedure, rules and regulation
▪ Technique, practice and training – appropriate
training should be given
▪ Safety equipment – Biological Safety Cabinet
and PPE
▪ Standard microbiological practice
▪ Universal precaution
 UNIVERSAL PRECAUTION

• Precautions designed preventing the transmission of

blood-borne diseases when first aid or health care is
provided.
• Universal Precautions were initially developed in 1987 by
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, US.
• Under Universal Precautions,
• Blood and certain body fluids of all patients are
considered potentially infectious.
• The Precautions include specific recommendations for use of
gloves, gowns, masks, and protective eyewear when in
contact with body secretions containing blood
 EMPLOYEE HEALTH PROGRAM

▪ Periodic physical examinations should be scheduled as part of

a surveillance program

▪ Vaccination

Keeping permanent records of individual work

assignments
 SAFE WORK PRACTICES

❖PPE ❖Sharps objects

▪ Gloves ▪ Contaminated needles
▪ Latex Allergy shall not be bent,
Minimization recapped
▪ Respiratory ▪ Safety devices or
Protection alternatives to needles
should be used when
▪ Eye and Face available.
Protection
▪ Sharps containers for
▪ Laboratory Clothing disposal
 SAFE WORK PRACTICES

❖ Housekeeping and Personal Safety

▪ Housekeeping
▪ Hand washing
▪ Contamination Prevention
▪ Decontamination
▪ Plastic Use

❖ Biohazard Symbol and Labeling

 BIOLOGICAL SAFETY CABINETS

▪ Biological safety cabinets protect laboratory

workers from exposure to aerosols by controlling
contamination at its source.

▪ Absolute containment cabinets - capable of

preventing both aerosol and contact exposure

▪ Partial containment cabinets – designed to reduce

exposures to accidentally created aerosol
 BIOLOGICAL SAFETY CABINETS

❖ The selection of the most effective cabinet type depends upon

▪ The relative hazard of the microbiological agent

▪ The potential of the procedure involved to
produce infectious aerosols
 BIOLOGICAL SAFETY CABINETS

• CLASS 1 : CABINET
▪ Partial containment cabinet with limited front
opening
▪ Similar to fume hood
▪ Provide personnel and environmental protection
▪ Are NOT suitable for experimental systems that
are highly susceptible to airborne contamination
CLASS 1: CABINET
 BIOLOGICAL SAFETY CABINETS

• CLASS 2 :

▪ Partial containment cabinet

▪ Designed with inward air flow at a velocity to
protect personnel
▪ Provide personnel, environmental and product
protection
▪ Provide high localized control of the environment
surrounding lab
CLASS 2:
 BIOLOGICAL SAFETY CABINETS

• CLASS 3 :

▪ The only containment cabinet suitable for work

with high-risk agents/ operations
▪ Provides physical barriers that isolates the agent
from the surrounding environment
▪ Provides personnel and environment protection
by means of barrier protection with the user
working through gloves or gauntlets and
protection to the material within the cabinet
CLASS 3:
Q&A