What Does Acute Toxicity Mean?
Acute toxicity is the effect on the human body of either a single exposure or repeated multiple exposures to a compound over a short period of time. Acute toxicity relates to adverse effects that occur within 14 days of exposure. The opposite to acute toxicity is chronic toxicity, which relates to adverse effects resulting from long term exposure to a compound. OSHA and the ACGIH set regulatory limits for short term exposure to substances that produce acute toxicity.
