| Title: | Lifestyle and occupational factors affecting exposure to BTEX in municipal solid waste composting facility workers |
| Author(s): | Rafiee A; Delgado-Saborit JM; Sly PD; Amiri H; Hoseini M; |
| Address: | "Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. ISGlobal Barcelona Institute for Global Health, Barcelona Biomedical Research Park, Barcelona, Spain; Division of Environmental Health & Risk Management, School of Geography, Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom. Children's Health and Environment Program, Child Health Research Centre, The University of Queensland, South Brisbane, Australia. Research Center for Health Sciences, Institute of Health, Department of Environmental Health, School of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran. Electronic address: mohhoseini@sums.ac.ir" |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.11.398 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1879-1026 (Electronic) 0048-9697 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "Composting facilities workers are potentially exposed to different volatile organic compounds (VOCs). This study aims to investigate the potential exposure to benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX) compounds among workers of composting facilities by measuring un-metabolized BTEX in urine and to investigate the effect that several lifestyle factors (i.e. smoking and residential traffic), using personal protective equipment, and religious practices such as Ramadan fasting can have on the urinary BTEX concentrations. We assessed concentrations of BTEX in the urine of a composting facility workers. Samples were collected in May 2018. Overall, 25 workers chosen as the exposed group and 20 inhabitants living close to the composting facility as a control group. The urine samples were collected from studied subjects. Identification and quantification of un-metabolized BTEX was performed using a headspace gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Detailed information of participants was gathered by a comprehensive questionnaire. The geometric mean levels of urinary benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, m?ª╡p xylene, and o?ª╡xylene in the exposed subjects were 1.27, 2.12, 0.54, 1.22 and 1.51?ª+mug/L, respectively; 1.4 to 3.7-time higher than values in control group (p?ª+ |
| Keywords: | "Adult Air Pollutants, Occupational/*urine Benzene/metabolism Benzene Derivatives/urine *Composting Humans Iran *Life Style Male *Occupational Exposure Toluene/urine Volatile Organic Compounds/*metabolism Xylenes/urine Biomonitoring Composting Exposure ass;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineRafiee, Ata Delgado-Saborit, Juana Maria Sly, Peter D Amiri, Hoda Hoseini, Mohammad eng Netherlands 2018/12/12 Sci Total Environ. 2019 Mar 15; 656:540-546. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.11.398. Epub 2018 Nov 27" |
