o_19l7240m6bir3gi13t7slka2a.pdf

HC 28
Controlling Chemical Hazards During
the Application of Artificial Fingernails
Artificial fingernail products are made from many chemicals, but the main one in most of these
products is ethyl methacrylate (EMA). In 1974 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration outlawed a
similar chemical, methyl methacrylate (MMA), used in fingernail products. MMA was proven
harmful to nail technicians and customers. However, both MMA and EMA can cause contact
dermatitis, asthma, and allergies in the eyes and nose—all problems that nail technicians know
about. Both can make the eyes, nose, and other mucous membranes sting, become red, and
swell. Customers are at risk, too. Because it is often difficult to tell which chemical in a nail salon is
causing a sensitivity or allergy, it is best to control your exposure before you become sensitized.
CONTROLS
In the nail sal o n , to get rid of EMA in the air you breathe, you should app l y art if ic i a lfinger nails at a
ven ti lated work tab l e . It is also helpf u l to keep all bott l e s of fing e rn a i l liqu i d tightly capped. Finally,
you should look at your work habi t s to see if they can be imp r o v e d .
O VENTILATED TABLE
Re searchers from the Nat i o n a l Ins t it u t e for Occ up at i o n a l Safety and Health (NIOSH) have found
that a vent il at i o n tab l e pro tects the nail techn ic i a n best against breathi n g EMA. The vent i lated
ta ble is the most imp o rt a n t eng in e e ri n g cont r o l for gett i n g rid of EMA in the fing e rn a i l sa lon
be cause the vented tab l e places loc a l ex haust vent il at i o nclose to the work area.
• Place loc a l exh a u s t vent il at i o n as close to the EMA source as poss ib l e . Ex haust this air
out doors. Charc o a l filt e r s that all o w the air to be used over again are not reco mme n d e d be -
cause it is hard to know when the charc o a l is full.

• Build a vent il a t e d tab l e , or change a
ta ble you al ready own into a vent il a t e d
one (Figu r e 1). Vent il a t e d tab l e sizes will
vary from nail sal o n to nail sal o n . Choose
a wood for your vent il a t e d tab l e that will
not soak up the chemic a l s . If the tab l e
acts like a sponge, it may act ua l l y ex pose
you to the chemic a l s you want to avoid. A
ve neer-coated part ic l e board works well
for the tab l e mat er i a l .
Make a hole in the tab l e top for an air in -
take (called the downdraft face). This
downdraft face should be placed on the
tech ni cian’s side of the tab l e . Cover the
hole with a screen-like cover (or perf o -
rated plate) to pre vent things from falli n g
in.
Figure 1. Ventilated nail application table.
The clie n t ’s side of the tab l e should be a
lit tle higher than the techn ic i a n’s side.
This will all o w the clie n t ’s hands to hang
over the downdraft face and be as close
as poss ib l e to the loc a l ex haust vent il a -
tion (Figu r e 2).
• Make sure enough air blows through
the tab l e downdraft to get rid of the
EMA. The amount of air ex hausted
Figure 2. Interior construction of ventilated
nail application table.
de pends on its speed as it moves through the downdraft face and on the size of the tab l e
open ing. How ever, too much air rushi n g past the fing e rn a i l s may cause the art if ic i a lnail
prod uct to crystalize.
An air speed of 620 feet per minu t e , dir e c t l y above the 13- by 4-inch downdraft face works
well. A 2½-inch baff l e should sur round the downdraft face to pull the movi n g air closer to
the clie n t ’s hands.
Dif fer ent dryi n g times are needed for diff e re n t fing e rn a i l prod ucts and diff e re n t app l i ca tion
tech niques. Alt h o u g h a strong e r and larger airf l o w will coll e c t more dust duri n g fili n g and
dry the color coat faster, a slower and lower airf l o w gives better re sults for the art if ic i a l
fin ger nail prod uct.
• Choose an exh a u s t fan that can ex haust at least 250 cub i c feet per minu t e of air and has
¼-inch static pres sure. A c horse power cent r i fug a l fan should work well. To pre vent fan
noise from gett i n g in the way of talk or clie n t com fort, you can do one of three things: (1) buy
a quiet fan, (2) put a cover over a noisi e r fan, or (3) buy an outd o o r fan to be placed on an
out side wall. The fan should have cont r o l sett i n g s . Use eit h e r a multi-speed or high-volume
ex haust fan with a damper. You can find a fan supp l i e r by looki n g in a dir e ct o r y called
“Thomas Regi st e r of Americ a n Manuf a ct u r e r s . ” Look und e r the headi n g s of “fans” or “fans,
cen trif u gal.” Your publ i c lib r a r y should have this dir e ct o r y . The fan supp l i e r may be able to
in stall your fan, as well as supp l y the duct work and other needed mat er ia l s .

• Pro vide enough makeup air to re place the exh a u s t e d air. If the makeup air is too weak,
there will be negat i v e pres sure are a s and perh a p s drafts. The air in take, which pulls
out door air in side, should not be placed near the buildi n g exh a u s t . If the ex haust and in take
vents are too close, dirty air will be pulled back into the room.
• Comfort fans should not blow directly on the downdraft face because the strong air
movement can interfere with the exhaust airflow.
O KEEP DISPENSER BOTTLES CLOSED
Use disp e n s e r bott l e s that have small openi n g s , only large enough for an app l ic at i o nbrush to en -
ter. The bott l e stopp e r s should be press u r e sens it i v e . A disp e n s e r bott l e with a press u r e - s ensitive
stop per and small openi n g will res u l t in less evapor at i o n of the fing e rn a i l liqu i d and, thus, will cut
down on poss ib l e exp os u r e s to metha cr yl a t e s (Figu r e 3).
O CHANGE YOUR WORK HABITS
Nail techn ic i a n s can also lower their exp os u r e s
to these air borne chemic a l s by changi n g some
of their work habi t s :
1. EMA-soaked gauze pads should be placed
in a sealed bag bef o r e bei n g thrown in the
trash can.
2. Trash can line r s should be changed daily.
3. No more than the needed amount of fing e r -
nail liqu i d should be poured into the closed
dis penser bott l e .
4. Nail technicians should wear personal protec -
tive clothing and glasses. When techniciansre -
move artificialnails, chips of acrylic often fly off,
cre at ing a need for eye protection. In additi on
Figure 3. Example of closed container for
fingernail liquid; pressure is applied to the brush
to release a spring-loaded stopper.
to safety glasses, techniciansalso should wear long sleeves and gloves to protect their skin
from acrylic dust.
5. Tech ni cians should wash their hands, arms, and face with mild soap and wat e r seve r a l times
through out the day to remo v e pot e nt i a l l yirr it a ti n g dust.
6. Eating and drinki n g should not be all o we d where art if ic i a lfing e rn a i l s are app l i e d or in other
work ing are a s . Metha cr yl a t e s in nail dust can be carr i e d acc id e n t l y to the mouth or face on a
cup or other food item, and this con tact may cause a skin rash. Also, many other chemic a l s
are used in a sal o n that could cause health probl e ms if swall o we d .
7. Smoking should be banned for the ent i r e sal o n be cause many of the chemic a l s in a beauty
shop, inc l u di n g nail prod ucts, catch fire easi l y .

For More Information
To obt a i n more free inf o rmat i o n about cont r o ll i n g this haza r d or for inf o rmat i o n about other
oc cu pa tional safety and health is sues:
—call NIOSH* at 1–800–35–NIOSH (1–800–356–4674), or
—visit the NIOSH Homepage on the World Wide Web at
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh
Ask for these publ ic at i o n s :
Spencer AB, Estill CF, McCammon JB, Mickelsen RL, Johnston OE [1997]. Cont r o l of ethyl
methacrylate exp os u r e s duri n g the app l ic at i o n of art if ic i a l fing e rn a i l s . Am Ind Hyg Assoc J
58 (3):214−218.
Spencer AB, Estill CF, McCammon JB, Johnston OE [1997]. NIOSH studi e s EMA. Nails
(No vem ber):50−54.
*NIOSH is the Federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for preventing work-related
illnesses and injuries. All HAZARD CONTROLS are based on research studies that show how worker exposure to hazardous
agents or activities can be significantly reduced.
Acknowledgments
The princ ip a l cont r ib ut o r s to this publ ic at i o n are Cheryl F. Estill, Amy B. Spencer, Jane B.
McCammon, R. Leroy Mickelsen, Ova E. Johnston, Anne Votaw, and Jerome P. Flesch. The
draw ings are by Dick Carlson, Dani e l Farwick, and Dani e l Watkins. Desktop publishing was
provided by Rosmarie T. Hagedorn and Su san Kaelin.
This docum e n t is in the publ i c dom a i n and may be freely copi e d or rep r i n t e d . NIOSH enc o u ra g e s
all reader s of this HAZARD CONTROLS to make it availa b l e to all int e re s t e d emp l o ye r s and worke r s .
January 1999
DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 99−112