The effects of occupational exposure on the respiratory health of West Virginia morticians.

Standardized respiratory disease questionnaires and pulmonary function tests were administered to licensed white male morticians attending an educational program in Morgantown, W.Va. Detailed occupational histories were obtained; included were estimates of the numbers of bodies personally embalmed. The pulmonary function of morticians compared favorably with that of residential populations in Oregon and Michigan. Among morticians, relatively high exposure was not associated with chronic bronchitis or pulmonary function deficits. The results suggest that long-term intermittent exposure to low levels of formaldehyde gas exerts no meaningful chronic effect on respiratory health.