Date: Wed, 27 Aug 1997 06:41:06 -0600
From: ghg@worldserver.com
Message-ID: <872681354.354@dejanews.com>
Subject: R-123/R-124 Linked to Liver damage in humans
Newsgroups: sci.engr.heat-vent-ac,rec.autos.tech

There are news reports circulating about Liver Damage in 9 Humans
from exposure to R-123/R-124 blends.  I first saw it in the
Washington Post a couple days back.

http://search.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-08/22/080l-082297-
idx.
html

This is based on an article in "The Lancet", a British Medical Journal.

http://www.thelancet.com/lancet/User/vol350no9077/articles/article2.html

The Lancet will ask you to register and give you a password (free).

It appears that an "Epidemic of Acute Liver Hepatitus" occurred over
several months in an unidentified smelter in Belgium when workers were
exposed to leaking HCFC-123 and 124.  The Epidemic ended after the leak
was fixed (in a plastic pipe?)  R-123 was previously found to have caused
(benign) testicle tumors in rats (but they lived longer).  Both R-123
and R-124 are "new" molecules, going into commercial production in the
early 1990s.

Some Common refrigerants that contain R-124

R-401[A/B/C] (MP-39/66/52), R-414A (Autofrost-X4), R-414B (Hotshot),
R-409A/B (FX-56/57), Frigc FR-12.

Regular Autofrost (R-406A) does not contain R-124

--ghg