Biological hazard

A biological hazard, or biohazard, is a biological substance that poses a threat to the health of living organisms, primarily humans. This could include a sample of a microorganism, virus or toxin that can adversely affect human health. A biohazard could also be a substance harmful to other living beings.[lower-alpha 1]

The term and its associated symbol are generally used as a warning, so that those potentially exposed to the substances will know to take precautions. The biohazard symbol was developed in 1966 by Charles Baldwin, an environmental-health engineer working for the Dow Chemical Company on their containment products.[1]

It is used in the labeling of biological materials that carry a significant health risk, including viral samples and used hypodermic needles.

In Unicode, the biohazard symbol is U+2623 ().

ANSI Z535/OSHA/ISO regulation

Biohazardous safety issues are identified with specified labels,[lower-alpha 2] signs and paragraphs established by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). Today, ANSI Z535 standards for biohazards are used worldwide and should always be used appropriately within ANSI Z535 Hazardous Communications (HazCom) signage, labeling and paragraphs. The goal is to help workers rapidly identify the severity of a biohazard from a distance and through colour and design standardization.

Biological hazard symbol design:

  • A red on white or white-coloured background is used behind a black biohazard symbol when integrated with a DANGER sign, label or paragraph.
  • An orange on black or white-coloured background is used behind a black biohazard symbol when integrated with a WARNING sign, label or paragraph.
  • A yellow on black or white-coloured background is used behind a black biohazard symbol when integrated with a CAUTION sign, label or paragraph.
  • A green on white or white-coloured background is used behind a black biohazard symbol when integrated with a NOTICE sign, label or paragraph.

DANGER is used to identify a biohazard that will cause death. WARNING is used to identify a biohazard that may cause death. CAUTION is used to identify a biohazard that will cause injury, but not death. NOTICE is used to identify a non-injury biohazard message (e.g. hygiene, cleanup or general lab policies).

OSHA requires the use of proper ANSI HazCom where applicable in American workplaces. States and local governments also use these standards as codes and laws within their own jurisdictions. Proper use of ANSI Z535 signs, labels and paragraphs are written into many of OSHA's standards for HazCom and crafted to integrate with ISO symbols.

Reference ANSI Z535 for a complete description on how to use DANGER, WARNING, CAUTION and NOTICE signs, labels or paragraphs.

UN/ISO Classification

Biohazardous agents are classified for transportation by UN number:[2]

  • Category A, UN 2814 – Infectious substance, affecting humans: An infectious substance in a form capable of causing permanent disability or life-threatening or fatal disease in otherwise healthy humans or animals when exposure to it occurs.
  • Category A, UN 2900 – Infectious substance, affecting animals (only): An infectious substance that is not in a form generally capable of causing permanent disability or life-threatening or fatal disease in otherwise healthy humans and animals when exposure to themselves occurs.
  • Category B, UN 3373 – Biological substance transported for diagnostic or investigative purposes.
  • Regulated Medical Waste, UN 3291 – Waste or reusable material derived from medical treatment of an animal or human, or from biomedical research, which includes the production and testing.

Levels of biohazard

Immediate disposal of used needles into a sharps container is standard procedure.
NHS medics practice using protective equipment used when treating Ebola patients

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) categorizes various diseases in levels of biohazard, Level 1 being minimum risk and Level 4 being extreme risk. Laboratories and other facilities are categorized as BSL (Biosafety Level) 1–4 or as P1 through P4 for short (Pathogen or Protection Level).

See also

Notes

  1. See Classification, "Category A, UN 2900"
  2. See Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals for chemical labelling standards for containers.

References

  1. "Biohazard Symbol History". Archived from the original on February 13, 2012.
  2. "USDA Policies and Procedures on Biohazardous Waste Decontamination, Management, and Quality Controls at Laboratories and Technical Facilities". USDA. Archived from the original on March 5, 2017. Retrieved December 17, 2016.
  3. Tigabu, Bersabeh; Rasmussen, Lynn; White, E. Lucile; Tower, Nichole; Saeed, Mohammad; Bukreyev, Alexander; Rockx, Barry; LeDuc, James W.; Noah, James W. (1 April 2014). "A BSL-4 High-Throughput Screen Identifies Sulfonamide Inhibitors of Nipah Virus". Assay and Drug Development Technologies. 12 (3): 155–161. doi:10.1089/adt.2013.567. PMC 3994909. PMID 24735442.

Bibliography

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