Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

Research Article

The relationship between spontaneous abortion and female workers in the semiconductor industry: Heechan Kim, Ho-Jang Kwon, Jeongbae Rhie, Sinye Lim, Yun-Dan Kang, Sang-Yong Eom, Hyungryul Lim, Jun-Pyo Myong, Sangchul Roh; Ann Occup Environ Med 2017;29:49. Published online October 9, 2017; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40557-017-0204-x

Background

This study investigated the relationship between job type and the risk for spontaneous abortion to assess the reproductive toxicity of female workers in the semiconductor industry.

Methods

A questionnaire survey was administered to current female workers of two semiconductor manufacturing plants in Korea. We included female workers who became pregnant at least 6 months after the start of their employment with the company. The pregnancy outcomes of 2,242 female workers who experienced 4,037 pregnancies were investigated. Personnel records were used to assign the subjects to one of three groups: fabrication process workers, packaging process workers, and clerical workers. To adjust for within-person correlations between pregnancies, a generalized estimating equation was used. The logistic regression analysis was limited to the first pregnancy after joining the company to satisfy the assumption of independence among pregnancies. Moreover, we stratified the analysis by time period (pregnancy in the years prior to 2008 vs. after 2009) to reflect differences in occupational exposure based on semiconductor production periods.

Results

The risk for spontaneous abortion in female semiconductor workers was not significantly higher for fabrication and packaging process workers than for clerical workers. However, when we stratified by time period, the odds ratio for spontaneous abortion was significantly higher for packaging process workers who became pregnant prior to 2008 when compared with clerical workers (odds ratio: 2.21; 95% confidence interval: 1.01–4.81).

Conclusions

When examining the pregnancies of female semiconductor workers that occurred prior to 2008, packaging process workers showed a significantly higher risk for spontaneous abortions than did clerical workers. The two semiconductor production periods in our study (prior to 2008 vs. after 2009) had different automated processes, chemical exposure levels, and working environments. Thus, the conditions prior to 2008 may have increased the risk for spontaneous abortions in packaging process workers in the semiconductor industry.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s40557-017-0204-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Citations

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Associations between maternal occupational exposures and pregnancy outcomes among Chinese nurses: a nationwide study
Zhaoqiang Jiang, Junfei Chen, Lingfang Feng, Mingying Jin, Shuang Liu, Lina Wang, Jing Wang, Changyan Yu, Jianhong Zhou, Yan Ye, Liangying Mei, Wenlan Yu, Xing Zhang, Jianlin Lou
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Toxicology and Environmental Health Sciences.2022; 14(1): 1. CrossRef
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Research Article

Assessment of Arsenic Exposure by Measurement of Urinary Speciated Inorganic Arsenic Metabolites in Workers in a Semiconductor Manufacturing Plant: Kiwhan Byun, Yong Lim Won, Yang In Hwang, Dong-Hee Koh, Hosub Im, Eun-A Kim; Ann Occup Environ Med 2013;25:21-21. Published online October 11, 2013; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/2052-4374-25-21

Abstract PDF PubReader ePub

Objectives

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the exposure to arsenic in preventive maintenance (PM) engineers in a semiconductor industry by detecting speciated inorganic arsenic metabolites in the urine.

Methods

The exposed group included 8 PM engineers from the clean process area and 13 PM engineers from the ion implantation process area; the non-exposed group consisted of 14 office workers from another company who were not occupationally exposed to arsenic. A spot urine specimen was collected from each participant for the detection and measurement of speciated inorganic arsenic metabolites. Metabolites were separated by high performance liquid chromatography-inductively coupled plasma spectrometry-mass spectrometry.

Results

Urinary arsenic metabolite concentrations were 1.73 g/L, 0.76 g/L, 3.45 g/L, 43.65 g/L, and 51.32 g/L for trivalent arsenic (As³⁺), pentavalent arsenic (As⁵⁺), monomethylarsonic acid (MMA), dimethylarsinic acid (DMA), and total inorganic arsenic metabolites (As³⁺ + As⁵⁺ + MMA + DMA), respectively, in clean process PM engineers. In ion implantation process PM engineers, the concentrations were 1.74 g/L, 0.39 g/L, 3.08 g/L, 23.17 g/L, 28.92 g/L for As³⁺, As⁵⁺, MMA, DMA, and total inorganic arsenic metabolites, respectively. Levels of urinary As³⁺, As⁵⁺, MMA, and total inorganic arsenic metabolites in clean process PM engineers were significantly higher than that in the non-exposed group. Urinary As³⁺ and As⁵⁺ levels in ion implantation process PM engineers were significantly higher than that in non-exposed group.

Conclusion

Levels of urinary arsenic metabolites in PM engineers from the clean process and ion implantation process areas were higher than that in office workers. For a complete assessment of arsenic exposure in the semiconductor industry, further studies are needed.

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Reproductive Hazards Still Persist in the Microelectronics Industry: Increased Risk of Spontaneous Abortion and Menstrual Aberration among Female Workers in the Microelectronics Industry in South Korea
Inah Kim, Myoung-Hee Kim, Sinye Lim, Roger C. Young
PLOS ONE.2015; 10(5): e0123679. CrossRef
The separation of arsenic metabolites in urine by high performance liquid chromatographyinductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry
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Environmental Health and Toxicology.2014; 29: e2014018. CrossRef

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Original Article

Review on Potential Risk Factors in Wafer Fabrication Process of Semiconductor Industry: Dong Uk Park, Hyae Jeong Byun, Sang Jun Choi, Jee Yeon Jeong, Chung Sik Yoon, Chi Nyon Kim, Kwon Chul Ha, Doo Yong Park; Korean Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 2011;23(3):333-342. Published online September 30, 2011; DOI: https://doi.org/10.35371/kjoem.2011.23.3.333

Abstract PDF

OBJECTIVES
To associate work in the semiconductor industry, including silicon wafer fabrication, with cancer risks or mortality and other adverse health effects, the operation of wafer fabrication should initially be understood. A detailed study on the fabrication operation allows retrospective exposure to be assessed and wafer fabrication workers to be classified into similar exposure groups. Therefore, the objective of this study was to comprehensively review silicon wafer fabrication operations and related hazardous materials and agents.
METHODS
The literatures related to semiconductor industry processes were reviewed from an occupational health viewpoint based on wafer manufacturing, wafer fabrication and packaging. The focus was especially related to the hazardous materials used in wafer fabrication industries.
RESULTS
During the fabrication of silicon wafers, many toxic chemicals, a strong electric field and hazardous equipment are used. The process allows the integration of a three-dimensional array of electric circuits onto a silicon wafer substrate. Wafers are sliced from single crystal silicon and subject to a series of steps during the fabrication process, which alternatively adds and then selectively removes materials in layers from the surface of the wafer to create different parts of the completed integrated circuit. There are four major steps in this process; patterning, junction formation, thin film and metallization.
CONCLUSIONS
In order to associate exposure to the hazard agents generated during wafer fabrication operations with adverse health effects the details of the operation should be completely studied, which will be helpful in both exposure assessments and epidemiological studies.

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