Pentamidine isethionate is currently used for the prophylaxis and treatment
of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. Its use has been associated with a numb
er of symptoms in staff administering treatment, and there are some additio
nal concerns about possible adverse health effects of long term exposure. T
he aim of this study was to quantify exposure of health care staff administ
ering nebulized pentamidine to patients. Personal breathing zone and static
air samples at the height of the patient's head were collected during the
nebulization of pentamidine to nine sequential outpatients attending a haem
ophilia unit. These were analysed using a standard method allowing the expo
sure of staff to be estimated. The duration of treatment varied between 15
and 60 min. Personal breathing zone samples showed exposure to be between 2
and 100 mu g/m(3), Static samples showed the concentration of pentamidine
in the room varied from 15 to 2,100 mu g/m(3). While these exposures were r
elatively low, they were higher than some other studies have reported, and
may pose some risk of adverse effects to staff. Some simple measures could
reduce staff exposure.