Risk for hypertension in workers exposed to carbon disulfide in the viscose rayon industry

Chronic exposure to carbon disulfide (CS(2)) has been associated with hypertension, elevated cholesterol, arteriosclerosis, ischemic heart disease and related mortality, adverse nervous and reproductive health effects, and hearing impairment. This study assessed the hypertension risk for male rayon workers exposed to CS(2).

A total of 251 rayon workers and 226 administrative clerks at two plants in Taiwan received health examination and interviews, and were compared for hypertension risk. On-site CS(2) levels were measured.

The hypertension was more prevalent in the exposure group (43.4%) than in controls (7.1%) with greater impact on systolic blood pressure than diastolic. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed a significant dose-response relationship between hypertensive risk and cumulative exposure index (CEI) with an odds ratio of 15.1 for workers exposed to 343-468 year-ppm of CS(2). The overall risk was elevated to 7.6 times higher for rayon workers. The risk increased significantly after more than 10 years of employment.

This study suggests that it takes a long exposure period to develop hypertension for rayon workers with CS(2) exposure.