Notice to Readers Availability of NIOSH Manual of Analytical
Methods, Third Edition
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH)
has announced that volumes 1 and 2 of the NIOSH Manual of
Analytical
Methods, Third Edition, are now available; a third volume is
planned
for 1985. This manual is the primary source of analytical methods
cited in Criteria Documents, Current Intelligence Bulletins, and
reports produced by NIOSH of health-hazard evaluations,
industry-wide
studies, and control-technology assessments.
The manual was first published in 1974 in loose-leaf form and
contained 39 methods for analyzing 130 substances found in air and
biologic samples; the 1974 manual was reprinted four times. From
1974
through 1979, the joint NIOSH/Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA) Standards Completion Program established
performance criteria and validated over 300 existing and new
analytical methods (1,2). The seven-volume Second Edition was
published during 1977-1981 (3). The Second Edition included
methods
contained in the First Edition, the new methods validated by the
joint
NIOSH/OSHA Program, and additional methods developed by NIOSH. Its
3,700 pages include 510 analytical methods for monitoring chemical
exposures in the workplace. An estimated 6,000 copies are now in
use.
NIOSH began work on the Third Edition in 1983. The major goals
were to incorporate new data and analytic technology evaluated by
NIOSH or used by NIOSH or contracting laboratories and to reduce
the
size of the manual by using a more concise format.
More than 60 chemists and industrial hygienists participated in
the revision. Analytical methods were included for substances
that:
(1) are found frequently in field samples sent to NIOSH for
analysis;
(2) are referred to in NIOSH Criteria Documents or OSHA
regulations;
and (3) have a "high toxicity/exposure index," as determined from
the
known toxicity of the substance and the number of workers
potentially
exposed to it (4).
Discussion of each method begins with a summary, followed by a
list of the reagents and equipment needed, special safety
precautions,
and instructions for taking and handling samples. Three indexes
are
included for cross reference: (1) method numbers used in the Third
Edition; (2) method numbers used in the Second Edition; and (3)
names
and synonyms of the substance. A section on applicability helps
users
of the manual choose the most appropriate methods for their
purposes.
Chapters on the development and evaluation of methods, quality
assurance, air sampling techniques, and biologic samples are
included
to expand on the protocols used by NIOSH to develop and apply the
methods.
The NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods, Third Edition, is
available from the U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington,
D.C.
20402, under a subscription service that includes the basic manual
and
all annual supplements through 1987. The manual is also available
from the Superintendent of Documents for $31.00 (U.S. orders) or
$38.75 (outside the United States).
Questions and suggestions for improving the manual should be
sent
to: Manual Coordinator, NIOSH, Division of Physical Sciences and
Engineering, Mail Stop R-2, 4676 Columbia Parkway, Cincinnati, Ohio
45226; telephone: (513) 684-4323.
Reported by Div of Physical Sciences and Engineering, National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, CDC.
References
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
Documentation of the NIOSH validation tests. DHEW publication
no.
(NIOSH) 77-185, 1977.
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
Development and validation of methods for sampling and analysis
of
workplace toxic substances. DHHS publication no. (NIOSH)
80-133,
1980.
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Manual of
analytical methods, 2nd ed. DHEW publication no. (NIOSH)
77-157-A
(V.1), 77-157-B (V.2), 77-157-C (V.3), 78-175 (V.4), 79-141
(V.5);
and DHHS publication no. (NIOSH) 80-125 (V.6) and 82-100 (V.7).
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. A model
for the identification of high risk occupational groups using
RTECS and NOHS data. DHHS publication no. (NIOSH) 83-117,
1983.
Disclaimer
All MMWR HTML documents published before January 1993 are electronic conversions from ASCII text into HTML. This conversion may have resulted in character translation or format errors in the HTML version. Users should not rely on this HTML document, but are referred to the original MMWR paper copy for the official text, figures, and tables. An original paper copy of this issue can be obtained from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), Washington, DC 20402-9371; telephone: (202) 512-1800. Contact GPO for current prices.
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