The effect of aerosol hair spray inhalation in the hamster

Hamsters were exposed to a commercially available aerosol hair spray actuated for a total of 8 minutes over a 4-hour-period, 5 days/week. They were examined after 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6-week exposures, and 2,4 and 8 weeks after a 6-week exposure. There was a significant increase in the lung weight of exposed hamsters at every time point except 8 weeks after the 6-week exposure. Microscopic changes in the lung were characterized by the presence of a few to a moderate number of macrophages and neutrophils in the alveolar lumina. The number of macrophages and neutrophils appeared directly related to the duration of exposure. Lung changes were minimal during the first 2-weeks of exposure, and 8 weeks after the 6-week exposure (recovery period). Pathologic changes in the lungs of hamsters were reversible after cessation of the hair spray inhalation exposure.