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of the jaw: exposure to slight radium influence may not be the cause of this malady.
I do not mean to imply by the foregoing comments that although your executives
in 1924 may have considered the case against radium exposure as the cause of the
trouble as "not proven, 11 that nothing should have been done about it. On the
contrary, it would have been well to have adopted such measures as were practicable
to diminish radium exposure of dial painters to a minimum, on the suspicion that
such exposure might be the cause of trouble. I do not know that action, if any,your
company took at that time. The following procedures occur to me as tending to
bring danger of exposure to a negligible state.
1. Luminous paint to be mixed preferably by automatic mixers at a distance
from the dial painting rooms, and brought to painters as a wet paste in small portions.
2. Finished dials to be removed from painting room at frequent intervals --
a belt conveyer could be used.
3. Paint brushes should be thoroughly sterilized by heat before being issued
to dial painters. (Anthrax hazard).
4. The pointing of brushes in the mouth should be strictly prohibited and a
standard technique substituted and rigidly enforced. If pointing was still occasion-
ally detected, brushes could be washed and sterilized daily. The brush issued to
one person should not be used by any other.
5. Good ventilation of the painting room would remove dust and radium
emanation as far as possible.
6. Lead screens of 1/2 to 1 inch in thickness, arranged as in your crystalling
laboratory (which I saw 3 or 4 years ago) could be used to give each painter a large
measure of protection from the very slight gamma ray activity of the paint being used.
6. Ample lavatory facilities and enforced rules about washing up thoroughly
at noon and night would reduce the ingestion of radium to a minimum.
7. Weekly or monthly dental inspection, and service where necessary, with
insistence on good dental hygiene, would go far toward the prevention of all dental
troubles and insure the early detection of any abnormal influences.
8. It might also be advisable to discourage employees from working at dial
painting for more than a year or two. Medical and dental examinations of new employ-
ees would eliminate all below normal.
9. Finally, a complete solution of dial painters hazard, whatever its cause,
would result from the invention of an automatic machine to paint dials. Such
a
thing ought not bo be impracticable.
In conclusion, since this report may come into the hands of persons who
are not acquainted with the writer, it may be advisable to state that I am not a
physician, nor have I studied thoroughly the literature of the physiological effects
of
radium. My criticisms and comments are those of a chemist who has had 25 years
of experience in experimental work with radio active substances and who has also been
connected with the technical production of the radio active elements, uranium, radium,
thorium, and mesothorium for the past 13 years.
Chicago,
(signed) Herbert N. McCoy
January 23,1928.
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"ocrText": "-6-\nof the jaw: exposure to slight radium influence may not be the cause of this malady.\nI do not mean to imply by the foregoing comments that although your executives\nin 1924 may have considered the case against radium exposure as the cause of the\ntrouble as \"not proven, 11 that nothing should have been done about it. On the\ncontrary, it would have been well to have adopted such measures as were practicable\nto diminish radium exposure of dial painters to a minimum, on the suspicion that\nsuch exposure might be the cause of trouble. I do not know that action, if any,your\ncompany took at that time. The following procedures occur to me as tending to\nbring danger of exposure to a negligible state.\n1. Luminous paint to be mixed preferably by automatic mixers at a distance\nfrom the dial painting rooms, and brought to painters as a wet paste in small portions.\n2. Finished dials to be removed from painting room at frequent intervals --\na belt conveyer could be used.\n3. Paint brushes should be thoroughly sterilized by heat before being issued\nto dial painters. (Anthrax hazard).\n4. The pointing of brushes in the mouth should be strictly prohibited and a\nstandard technique substituted and rigidly enforced. If pointing was still occasion-\nally detected, brushes could be washed and sterilized daily. The brush issued to\none person should not be used by any other.\n5. Good ventilation of the painting room would remove dust and radium\nemanation as far as possible.\n6. Lead screens of 1/2 to 1 inch in thickness, arranged as in your crystalling\nlaboratory (which I saw 3 or 4 years ago) could be used to give each painter a large\nmeasure of protection from the very slight gamma ray activity of the paint being used.\n6. Ample lavatory facilities and enforced rules about washing up thoroughly\nat noon and night would reduce the ingestion of radium to a minimum.\n7. Weekly or monthly dental inspection, and service where necessary, with\ninsistence on good dental hygiene, would go far toward the prevention of all dental\ntroubles and insure the early detection of any abnormal influences.\n8. It might also be advisable to discourage employees from working at dial\npainting for more than a year or two. Medical and dental examinations of new employ-\nees would eliminate all below normal.\n9. Finally, a complete solution of dial painters hazard, whatever its cause,\nwould result from the invention of an automatic machine to paint dials. Such\na\nthing ought not bo be impracticable.\nIn conclusion, since this report may come into the hands of persons who\nare not acquainted with the writer, it may be advisable to state that I am not a\nphysician, nor have I studied thoroughly the literature of the physiological effects\nof\nradium. My criticisms and comments are those of a chemist who has had 25 years\nof experience in experimental work with radio active substances and who has also been\nconnected with the technical production of the radio active elements, uranium, radium,\nthorium, and mesothorium for the past 13 years.\nChicago,\n(signed) Herbert N. McCoy\nJanuary 23,1928."
}