| Title: | Firefighters' and instructors' absorption of PAHs and benzene during training exercises |
| Author(s): | Fent KW; Toennis C; Sammons D; Robertson S; Bertke S; Calafat AM; Pleil JD; Geer Wallace MA; Kerber S; Smith DL; Horn GP; |
| Address: | "Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Cincinnati, OH, USA. Electronic address: kfent@cdc.gov. Division of Applied Research and Technology, NIOSH, CDC, Cincinnati, OH, USA. Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Cincinnati, OH, USA. Division of Laboratory Services, National Center for Environmental Health, CDC, Atlanta, GA, USA. National Exposure Research Laboratory, Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA. Firefighter Safety Research Institute, Underwriters Laboratories, Columbia, MD, USA. Health and Human Physiological Sciences, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY, USA; Illinois Fire Service Institute, University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, IL, USA. Health and Human Physiological Sciences, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY, USA" |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.ijheh.2019.06.006 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1618-131X (Electronic) 1438-4639 (Print) 1438-4639 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "INTRODUCTION: Training fires may constitute a major portion of some firefighters' occupational exposures to smoke. However, the magnitude and composition of those exposures are not well understood and may vary by the type of training scenario and fuels. OBJECTIVES: To understand how structure fire training contributes to firefighters' and instructors' select chemical exposures, we conducted biological monitoring during exercises involving combustion of pallet and straw and oriented strand board (OSB) or the use of simulated smoke. METHODS: Urine was analyzed for metabolites of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and breath was analyzed for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) including benzene. RESULTS: Median concentrations of nearly all PAH metabolites in urine increased from pre-to 3-hr post-training for each scenario and were highest for OSB, followed by pallet and straw, and then simulated smoke. For instructors who supervised three trainings per day, median concentrations increased at each collection. A single day of OSB exercises led to a 30-fold increase in 1-hydroxypyrene for instructors, culminating in a median end-of-shift concentration 3.5-fold greater than median levels measured from firefighters in a previous controlled-residential fire study. Breath concentrations of benzene increased 2 to 7-fold immediately after the training exercises (with the exception of simulated smoke training). Exposures were highest for the OSB scenario and instructors accumulated PAHs with repeated daily exercises. CONCLUSIONS: Dermal absorption likely contributed to the biological levels as the respiratory route was well protected. Training academies should consider exposure risks as well as instructional objectives when selecting training exercises" |
| Keywords: | "Air Pollutants, Occupational/*analysis/urine Benzene/*analysis Biological Monitoring Breath Tests Exhalation Female *Firefighters/education Fires Humans Male Occupational Exposure/*analysis Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons/*urine Teaching Biomarker Breath;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineFent, Kenneth W Toennis, Christine Sammons, Deborah Robertson, Shirley Bertke, Stephen Calafat, Antonia M Pleil, Joachim D Geer Wallace, M Ariel Kerber, Steve Smith, Denise L Horn, Gavin P eng EPA999999/ImEPA/Intramural EPA/ Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S. Germany 2019/07/06 Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2019 Aug; 222(7):991-1000. doi: 10.1016/j.ijheh.2019.06.006. Epub 2019 Jul 2" |
