Personal exposure of workers to atmospheric PAHs on gasworks sites--The SOLEX study.

The aim of the SOLEX study was to estimate the personal exposure of workers to atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) on former gasworks sites in the Paris metropolitan area. Devices to sample gas and particulate phases for 9 PAHs were carried during one working day of a study week in November 1997 by 24 workers and in June 1998 by 19 workers with contrasted job profiles involving different opportunities for contact with the soil; among these volunteers, some were active in the process of contaminated soil remediation during the November study period. PAH concentrations were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography. Subjects working on the site under remediation were clearly more exposed (684.1 ng/m3 for total PAHs in November 1997) than workers, without close contact with soil, whose PAH exposure was similar to that measured by fixed monitors in the ambient air in Paris. The contrasts were weaker in June 1998, when soil remediation had nearly been completed. Only subjects involved in activities with close contact with the ground were found with exposures exceeding background levels. Further investigations are needed to improve our understanding of the influence of the pollutants present in the soil.

Urinary 1-hydroxypyrene as a biomarker of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons exposure of workers on a contaminated site: influence of exposure conditions.

The aim of the study was to determine the exposure levels of workers to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on gasworks sites by the measurement of urinary 1-hydroxypyrene. Start-shift and end-shift urine samples were taken every day during an entire week (Monday to Friday), once in November and a second time in June. Four groups of workers were selected according to their activity. Increased exposure was only found among volunteers involved in the remediation of a site, 0.16 to 2.31 mumol/mol creatinine in non-smokers. The median of the non-smoker referent group was 0.02 mumol/mol creatinine (95% confidence interval, 0.01 to 0.04). Smokers had greater exposure levels than non-smokers in every group. Within and between variability was around 200%. Assessment of the exposure of persons on contaminated soil is possible, with the condition that the exposed subjects come in direct contact with the soil.

Feasibility of assessing dermal exposure to PAHs of workers on gaswork sites--the SOLEX study.

Population exposure to pollutants in soil is an important public health concern. Difficult to measure, it is usually estimated using multimedia models. Modeling data predict that the skin surface is a predominant exposure route in roughly 15% of the US Superfund sites. Nonetheless, no study has confirmed these predictions. The SOLEX study was an opportunity to study the feasibility of estimating the cutaneous polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs: all 16 of the United States Environmental Protection Agency list) load of workers at three former manufactured gas sites, one of those being under remediation. Over two measurement periods (November 1997 and June 1998), 30 and 28 volunteers, respectively, were equipped for a single day work with five pads that collected soil particles and were placed at the neck, shoulder, wrist, groin, and ankle. Pad contamination was observed for six of the nine workers on the site being remediated but not on other sites. The wrist pad was most often affected, followed by the neck pad, these are, the exposed regions of the body. The PAHs most frequently identified were anthracene, fluoranthene, naphthalene, phenanthrene, and pyrene, at concentrations relatively high. In conclusion, this study showed that estimating skin exposure to soil pollutants is feasible. Secondly, it suggested that only subjects in close contact with the soil had a detectable exposure to PAHs. Extension of this approach to other exposure settings is warranted, especially among children playing in polluted public or private gardens, because their games lead to frequent contact with the soil.

[Evaluation of decontamination interventions in 59 homes of children with lead poisoning]. / Evaluation des travaux de décontamination de 59 logements d'enfants atteints de saturnisme.

Old peeling paint with high content of lead has been identified as the main source of lead poisoning for children screened in Paris since 1985. In 1989, Médecins Sans Frontières and Migration Santé tested abatement methods in 59 homes of severely lead-poisoned children. The effectiveness of abatement is evaluated with respect to the evolution in dust lead contents and of the children's blood lead levels. Lead content wsas measured in dust samples collected from the floor of the homes before abatement, then every three months after abatement; results are available for 24 homes. Blood lead levels were assessed in the course of the children's medical follow-up; results are available before and after abatement for 78 children living in 41 of the abated homes. The effect of abatement on the children's blood lead level was assessed through multivariate analysis. The median decrease in dust lead contents was 365 micrograms/m2 one to two months after abatement and 300 micrograms/m2 three to six months after abatement. However, dust lead contents of more than 1,000 micrograms/m2 were found in more than half of the communal areas of the buildings six to twenty-eight months after abatement. For 2 of the families, abatement was associated with an increase in the children's blood lead-levels. For all of the other children, abatement was associated with a significant decrease in blood lead levels, controlling for the child's age and initial lead poisoning level, and for the overall downward trend in blood lead levels over time since the initial screening.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)