Study of effects on haematological parameters of rabbits intratracheally exposed to coal fly ash

This study was undertaken to evaluate the effects of the inorganic constitu ents of coal on the haematological parameters of rabbits. Coal obtained fro m mines in Enugu, Nigeria was ashed at temperature of 900 degreesC and the ash was fractionated to obtain a size range of 4-5 mum mean particle diamet er. Rabbits were exposed to 50, 100 and 200 mg per kilogram weight of the r abbits through intratracheal instillation. The exposure period was 14 days consecutively. Phosphate buffered saline was used as the carrier. Blood sam ples were collected on day 0, 2, 5, 8, 11, 14 immediately before fly ash ad ministration and also on the seventh day after termination of administratio n (day 21). Haematological parameters (red blood cell, white blood cell, ha emoglobin estimation and packed cell volume as well as platelet counts) wer e evaluated. Slight decreases in all the haematological parameters evaluate d within the 3-week study period were generally observed. These decreases w ere not however found to be significant when subjected to the Analysis of V ariance (ANOVA) test at 99 per cent confidence level. From the results of t his study, the suitability of the bituminous coal as a fuel with minimal ap propriate management is suggested.