Occupational Criteria for Chemical Agent VX

Abstract

The U.S. Army has stockpiles of chemical agents that are or will be undergoing demilitarization; among these is the chemical agent VX. Military and civilian munition personnel involved in the demilitarization of VX will be potentially at risk from accidental exposures. In order to ensure the safety of these workers, the current standards must be reevaluated in light of the most recent toxicological data, using the most appropriate methodology for determining maximum safe exposure limits. In this report, toxicological data for VX are reviewed to determine the most significant toxicological effects for defining minimum and no-effect levels; the basis for the current occupational standard is discussed; and a standard for VX is derived from both human and animal data correlating VX exposure to the inhibition of erythrocyte acetylcholinesterase. Keywords: Chemical agent VX, Occupational criteria, Toxicology.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 1988
Accession Number
ADA229531

Entities

People

  • Dennis M. Opresko
  • Rosemarie A. Faust

Organizations

  • Office of Naval Research

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acetylcholinesterases
  • Biomedical Research
  • Blood
  • Blood Cells
  • Cells
  • Chemical Synthesis
  • Chemical Warfare
  • Chemical Warfare Agents
  • Chemistry
  • Digestive System Processes
  • Enzyme Inhibitors
  • Laboratory Animals
  • Medical Personnel
  • Nerve Agents
  • Poisoning
  • Rodents

Readers

  • Neurotoxicology
  • Systems Analysis and Design
  • Toxicology/Environmental Toxicology