Cytogenetic Evaluation of Medical Students Exposed to Formaldehyde Vapor in the Gross Anatomy Dissection Laboratory

Abstract

Formaldehyde (FA) is a potential carcinogen and mutagen. In addition to inducing genotoxic effects in subhuman laboratory tests, FA has been found to be mutagenic to cultured human cells. Evidence regarding the genotoxic potential of FA on exposed individuals at occupational levels is insufficient and conflicting. The authors of this study examined chromosomal aberrations in peripheral blood lymphocytes from a group of 30 medical students exposed to FA for 15 months in a gross anatomy dissection laboratory. The results were compared with similar analyses from 30 off-site, matched, unexposed controls. At average exposures of less than 1 ppm, 72-hour lymphocyte cultures of the study cohort did not reveal any difference in the incidences of chromosomal aberrations among the exposed and the control group by conventional Giemsa staining and G-banding.