EVALUATION OF A METHOD USED TO TEST FOR POTENTIAL TOXICITY OF CARPET EMISSIONS

After a private testing laboratory had reported mortality, neurotoxici ty, and respiratory irritation in mice exposed to emissions from heate d carpet in a modified application of the sensory irritation test (AST M E981-84), the studies reported in this paper were conducted to evalu ate the method used in testing for carpet toxicity and to see if the r eported findings were reproducible. Mice were exposed head-only to off gasses generated by heating carpet (AT #3) to temperatures that ranged from 37 to 70 degrees C. Control mice were simultaneously exposed to heated air. The animals were evaluated for mortality, clinical signs a nd respiratory irritation. Neurotoxicity was evaluated using functiona l observational battery and motor activity monitoring. Pathological ev aluations of organs and tissues, including the nervous system, were al so conducted. The carpet samples heated to higher temperatures produce d greater concentrations of total volatile organic compounds than thos e heated to 37 degrees C. Both carpet-exposed and control mice display ed some effects, such as body weight loss, mortality and pathological lesions, that were due to the exposure system. There was no mortality or neurotoxicity, nor were there clinical signs or pathological lesion s as a result of carpet exposures. Mice exposed to carpet heated to 70 degrees C had slightly decreased respiratory rates and an increased i ncidence of breathing patterns indicative of sensory irritation. There fore, none of the results reported by the private testing labortory co uld be reproduced when this carpet was heated to temperatures below 70 degrees C, and slight sensory irritation was the only effect observed at the 70 degrees C test conditions. Effects from the exposure system itself made interpretation of results difficult, and concurrent contr ols were considered essential for interpretation of data.