Information for Health Professionals
Health Surveillance
The recent Gulf Coast Oil Spill more likely presents ecological impacts than human health effects. However, depending on the exposure pathways, there may be a risk for human health effects. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), along with the affected Gulf Coast states, has developed a surveillance plan to track the potential short-term health effects related to the oil spill in the affected communities.
CDC recommends using existing mechanisms for surveillance of acute health conditions. However, if existing mechanisms do not exist within an affected gulf coast state, targeted drop-in health care surveillance is recommended. CDC has developed a surveillance tool to be used for drop-in surveillance to monitor health complaints. Complaints captured by the tool include upper respiratory conditions; cardiovascular conditions; eye conditions; and stomach complaints such as nausea.
If people who are experiencing these symptoms have also been exposed to the oil spill, further study may be necessary.
Poison Center Surveillance
CDC has reached out to the 61 Poison Centers in the four Gulf Coast states (Louisiana, Florida, Alabama, and Mississippi) and has requested that any calls related to the oil spill—including informational calls and potential exposures—be assigned a temporary code. This coding will allow CDC to track the number of Poison Center calls and potential health effects.
Additional Links
ToxFAQs™ for Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons
Oil spill dispersant (COREXIT® EC9500A and EC9527A) information for health professionals
Case Studies in Environmental Medicine (CSEM) - exposure history
