PHENOL

Phenol, also known as carbolic acid, is flammable, corrosive, and very toxic. Phenolic compounds have a distinct odor and are used in disinfectants, deodorizers, paints, and as anesthetic for skin.

Ingestion of even small amounts may cause vomiting, circulatory collapse, paralysis, convulsions, and coma. Light sensitivity and sinus congestion are common with exposure to fluids or vapors. Fatal poisoning can occur through skin absorption. Phenol and related compounds rapidly denature all proteins they come in contact with, including skin. Severe burns may occur upon contact. A concentration of 1% phenol, used to prevent itching from insect bites and sunburn, applied over several hours, was reported to cause gangrene in one individual. Skin ulcerations, skin rashes, swelling, pimples, and hives have been widely reported. The anesthetic properties of phenols can allow extensive damage to skin tissue before pain is perceived. Although there have been many poisonings from phenolic solutions, phenol continues to be used in consumer products.

Hazard Summary

Phenol is highly irritating to the skin, eyes, and mucous membranes in humans after acute (short-term) inhalation or dermal exposures. Phenol is considered to be quite toxic to humans via oral exposure, with blood changes, liver and kidney damage, and cardiac toxicity reported.

Chronic inhalation exposure to phenol in humans has been associated with gastrointestinal irritation, liver injury, and muscular effects.

Environmental/Occupational Exposure Individuals may be exposed to phenol through breathing contaminated air or through skin contact in the workplace.

Other exposures to phenol may occur through the use of phenol-containing medicinal products or smoking tobacco or by eating certain foods such as fried chicken, mountain cheese, and some species of fish.

Assessing Personal Exposure Phenol can be detected in urine; this test can be used to determine whether a person has recently been exposed to phenol or to substances that are changed to phenol in the body. However, no test will tell whether a person has been exposed only to phenol, because many substances are changed to phenol in the body.

Health Hazard Information Acute Effects:

Inhalation and dermal exposure to phenol is highly irritating to the skin, eyes and mucous membranes in humans.

Phenol is considered to be very toxic to humans through oral exposure, with ingestion of 1 g reported to be lethal, with symptoms including muscle weakness and tremors, loss of coordination, paralysis, convulsions, coma, and respiratory arrest.

Blood changes, liver and kidney damage, and cardiac toxicity including weak pulse, cardiac depression, and reduced blood pressure have been reported in humans acutely exposed to phenol by the oral route.

Acute (short-term) Animal tests, such as the LD50 tests in rats, mice, and rabbits, have shown phenol to have high acute toxicity from oral exposure.

Chronic Effects (Noncancer): Limited data are available on the chronic effects of phenol in humans from inhalation or oral exposure. In one study, muscle pain, weakness, enlarged liver and elevated levels of liver enzymes were found in an individual after inhalation and dermal exposure to phenol and a few other chemicals.

Application of phenol to the skin results in dermal inflammation and necrosis. Cardiac arrhythmias have also been reported in individuals exposed to high concentrations of phenol.

Long-term inhalation exposure to phenol in animal studies has shown effects on the liver, kidney, respiratory, cardiovascular, and central nervous systems (CNSs)

The RfD for phenol is 0.6 mg/kg/d based on reduced fetal body weights in rats.

EPA has low confidence in the study on which the RfD was based because the dose was administered by gavage; medium confidence in the database because it contains several supporting studies (subchronic, chronic, and reproductive/developmental); and consequently, low-to-medium confidence in the RfD.

Source:

The Toxicology of Phenol (CAS No. 108-95-2) Sept 2002 (EPA/635/R-02/006), www.epa.com.