With the institution of the new chemical regulatory framework in 2003, chemicals at the workplace have been classified into five categories; banned substances, permission-required substances, regulated substances, occupational exposure limit set substances, and other generally controlled substances. Currently, there are 698 substances with OELs. As we have come to gain our own experiences in th...

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, on an administrative basis, establishes and supervises the Administrative Concentration Level, which can be viewed as an Occupational Exposure Limit (OEL) legally binding employers to maintain a good working environment. The Japan Society for Occupational Health, on a scientific basis, establishes the Recommended OELs, which can be viewed as a referenc...

The occupational exposure limits (OELs) in Taiwan was promulgated in 1974 and has been revised five times since then. Many of the OELs were adopted from the most recent ACGIH TLVs and US OSHA PELs. A total of 483 chemicals were listed in the current Taiwan OELs Standard. The procedures of OELs development in Taiwan include the IOSH organized a recommended exposure limits (RELs) Committee to sel...

Chromium is a naturally occurring, toxic heavy metal used in many industrial processes. The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has established specific limits for occupational exposure levels of chromium and guidelines for medical surveillance of individuals who have been exposed to chromium. The author presents a case in which a 54-year-old man who had bee...

Chemical allergens represent a significant health burden in the workplace. Exposures to such chemicals can cause the onset of a diverse group of adverse health effects triggered by immune-mediated responses. Common responses associated with workplace exposures to low molecular weight (LMW) chemical allergens range from allergic contact dermatitis to life-threatening cases of asthma. Establishin...

To set occupational exposure limits (OELs) for aerosol particles, dusts, or chemicals, one has to evaluate whether mechanistic considerations permit identification of a no observed effect level (NOEL). In the case of carcinogenic effects, this can be assumed if no genotoxicity is involved, and exposure is considered safe if it does not exceed the NOEL. If tumor induction is associated with geno...

Of the 700 million workers in China, approximately 200 million workers are potentially exposed to industrial hazards. Although the promulgation and implementation of occupational exposure limits (OELs) in China began in the mid-1950, a systematic approach was not formalized until the formation of the Subcommittee of Occupational Health Standards Setting (SOHSS) in 1981. More recently, the 2002 ...

Singapore is an island republic in South East Asia with a workforce of about 2.1 million including 0.7 million employed in the manufacturing industry. Singapore's industry is diversified and the main growth sectors include microelectronics, chemical, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, and biomedical sectors. Exposure to chemical hazards is one of the main occupational health problems in the manufac...

© Jonathan Borak and Lisa M. Brosseau This is an Open Access article. Non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly attributed, cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in anyway, is permitted. Themoral rights of the named author(s) have been asserted. Address correspondence to Jonathan Borak, Yale School of Medicine, 23...

Accepted 1 August 1996 Exposure limits for dangerous substances in working environments have played a major part in the control of occupational disease. Exposure limits are quantitative health standards expressed as mean concentrations over a given period which an environmental pollutant must not exceed if the exposed workers' health is not to be affected. This is true provided the term limit i...