ABSTRACT
Occupational exposures to riot control agents (RCAs) occur during the production and packaging of these agents, during training exercises where officers are exposed intentionally and during their operative use. There are published accounts of worker exposure to 1-chloroacetophenone (CN), o-chlorobenzylidene malononitrile (CS) and oleoresin capsicum (OC) but not to dibenz[b,f]1:4-oxazepine (CR) or n-nonanoyl vanillylamide (VAN). CR has been developed as an RCA and VAN is used by the police forces of at least four countries in personal defense sprays (Independent Police Commission of Northern Ireland, 2001). The use of personal defense sprays that have a high content of respirable particles can result in exposures to officers sufficiently high to cause as many symptoms as in those on whom the sprays are used. In this regard, Kock and Rix (1996) studied the use of CS by 3,818 police officers in 16 forces over a period of six months. CS was used 726 times. Officers using CS (78%) were cross-contaminated and experienced symptoms of burning to skin (49%), pain or discomfort to eyes (45%), breathing difficulties (7%), throat irritation (2%), and nasal irritation (3%). Symptom frequency experienced by those being sprayed was similar to those of police officers with 37% having burning to skin, 68% pain or discomfort to eyes, 16% breathing difficulties and 16% having no effects.
