• Proceedings of the Korean Environmental Health Society Conference
• /
• 2003.06a
• /
• pp.26-26
• /
• 2003

During the Viet Nam war, A Luoi located in Thua Thien Hue Province was heavily sprayed herbicides by the Ranch Hand Operation of U.S.A force (549.274 gallons). After 30 years of knocking the operation off, Dioxin has still contaminated on environment and human body in A Luoi valley. The results of the study show that there is an epidemiological relationship between AO/Dioxin exposure and increasing rate of reproductive anomalies and birth defects (the rate of reproductive anomalies including congenital deformities after the war during 10-year and 25-year is higher than that before the war from 1.5 to 4 times). The study found that the highest rate of reproductive anomalies is spontaneous abortion. The average is premature death and congenital deformities, and the lowest rate is dead foetus and hydratidiform mole. The results of the primary assessment suggested that Dioxin transport from environment to human body through the food chain exposed by Dioxin such as fish, chicken, duck. A mitigation plan for residual dioxin contamination from Agent Orange Hervicides is requeste indispensable to inhabitants in Aluoi District.

• Toxicological Research
• /
• v.17
• /
• pp.323-327
• /
• 2001

March 19, 1999, the renovation qf the runway of the Bo-Fai ai1field in Hua Hin, Prachubk-erikhan, Thailand, unearthed chemicals which were left over from the project "anch Hand Operation" held during the Vietnam war era. The chemical mixtures were analyzed by the US EPA, the Department oj Medical Sciences (DMSc), Ministry oj Public Health (MoPH) and the Pollution Control Department (PCD), the Ministry oj Science Technology and Environment (MOSTE) of Thailand, The samples were found to contain several defoliants used in the operation. They were 2,4-D, 2,4,5-T, Dicamba, Cocydelic acid, and Dioxins. Due to the complexity of the issue, the multiplicity of possible health effects, and the socio-economic implications for imports and exports, the Thai Society of Toxicology submitted a proposal to request World Health Organization (WHO), Geneva. The assistance is for the area of chemical safety and called for immediate action to explore the magnitude qf risk involved with Dioxins. In this paper we present our approach to health risk assessment which takes into an account the epidemiological studies of high-risk group exposed to the Ranch Hand operation. Dioxins are endocrine disruption chemicals which public concerns are developed due to presumption that a hazard exists (www.eva.gov/dioxins/html) for which current methodologies are deemed insufficient. The recent concepts of how oxidative stress toxicants may affect health end points and biomarkers of exposure of exposed individuals are discussed. While research activities are undergoing, The Thai Society of Toxicology do not anticipate significant risk to local residents and the environment due to our concurrence with opinion from the international experts invited by the World Health Organization proposed to the local experts at a workshop in Bangkok.n Bangkok.