[Histonet] Re: Pregnancy

[Bob Richmond]

Helayne Parker is concerned about a woman 5 weeks pregnant working in
an ordinary histopathology lab.

I think the major issue is xylene (along with toluene and benzene). If
the lab uses xylene in tissue processing and staining, I don't think
she should be around it. If the lab is otherwise xylene-free, the
mounting medium probably contains an aromatic hydrocarbon, and I don't
think she should be coverslipping even under a proper hood, since
xylene is readily absorbed through the skin.

I think formaldehyde depends on ventilation. If the lab's as badly
ventilated as most labs I work in, then I wouldn't want her to be
around it.

She should definitely run the problem past her OB-GYN, but I wouldn't
want to put her doctor in the position of having to decide for her,
simply because the problem is so far out of the doctor's field of
expertise. Remember that very few pathologists (let alone clinicians)
know as much about the materials science of histology as I do!

Bob Richmond
Samurai Pathologist
Maryville, TN