Why measure methyl tert-butyl ether?
This chemical, often abbreviated MTBE, is added to gasoline to make it burn cleaner. The problem is, spills and leaks from underground gas tanks have contaminated the water supply of some communities. Information on human exposure to MTBE is limited. Humans are acutely exposed to MTBE as a part of a medical treatment to dissolve cholesterol gallstones (Thistle, 1992). Injection of the gall bladder with a high dose of MTBE can be associated with several types of health effects (e.g., nausea, vomiting, sleepiness). Minor transient mucosal damage in the gallbladder has been demonstrated with extensive exposure, but no clinically significant consequences have been reported. One patient has been reported to develop intravascular hemolysis and renal failure following inadvertent extravasation of a large bolus of MTBE (Ponchon et al., 1988). Reliable data from epidemiology studies of human exposure to airborne MTBE are not currently available. Rats exposed to 400 parts per million (ppm) for l
