OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the contribution of traffic fumes to exposure to benzene in urban workers, an investigation on personal exposure to benzene in traffic police from the city of Rome was carried out. METHODS: The study was performed from December 1998 to June 1999. Diffusive Radiello personal samplers were used to measure external exposures to benzene and alkyl benzenes during the workshift in 139 policemen who controlled medium to high traffic areas and in 63 office police. Moreover, as biomarkers of internal exposure to benzene, blood benzene, and urinary trans, trans-muconic and S-phenyl mercapturic acids were measured at the beginning and at the end of the workshift in 124 traffic police and 58 office police. RESULTS: Time weighted average (TWA) exposure to benzene was consistently higher among traffic police than among indoor workers (geometric mean 6.8 and 3.5 microg/m(3), respectively). Among the traffic police, the distribution of individual exposures was highly asymmetric, skewed toward higher values. Mean ambient benzene concentrations measured by municipal air monitoring stations during workshifts of traffic police were generally higher (geometric mean 12.6 microg/m(3)) and did not correlat with personal exposure values. In particular, no association was found between highest personal exposure scores and environmental benzene concentrations. Among the exposure biomarkers investigated, only blood benzene correlated slightly with on-shift exposure to benzene, but significant increases in both urinary trans, trans-muconic and S-phenylmercapturic acids were found in active smokers compared with non-smokers, irrespective of their job. CONCLUSION: The exposure to traffic fumes during working activities in medium to high traffic areas in Rome may give a relatively greater contribution to personal exposure to benzene than indoor sources present in confined environments. Smoking significantly contributed to internal exposure to benzene in both indoor and outdoor workers.
OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the contribution of traffic fumes to exposure to benzene in urban workers, an investigation on personal exposure to benzene in traffic police from the city of Rome was carried out. METHODS: The study was performed from December 1998 to June 1999. Diffusive Radiello personal samplers were used to measure external exposures to benzene and alkyl benzenes during the workshift in 139 policemen who controlled medium to high traffic areas and in 63 office police. Moreover, as biomarkers of internal exposure to benzene, blood benzene, and urinary trans, trans-muconic and S-phenyl mercapturic acids were measured at the beginning and at the end of the workshift in 124 traffic police and 58 office police. RESULTS: Time weighted average (TWA) exposure to benzene was consistently higher among traffic police than among indoor workers (geometric mean 6.8 and 3.5 microg/m(3), respectively). Among the traffic police, the distribution of individual exposures was highly asymmetric, skewed toward higher values. Mean ambient benzene concentrations measured by municipal air monitoring stations during workshifts of traffic police were generally higher (geometric mean 12.6 microg/m(3)) and did not correlat with personal exposure values. In particular, no association was found between highest personal exposure scores and environmental benzene concentrations. Among the exposure biomarkers investigated, only blood benzene correlated slightly with on-shift exposure to benzene, but significant increases in both urinary trans, trans-muconic and S-phenylmercapturic acids were found in active smokers compared with non-smokers, irrespective of their job. CONCLUSION: The exposure to traffic fumes during working activities in medium to high traffic areas in Rome may give a relatively greater contribution to personal exposure to benzene than indoor sources present in confined environments. Smoking significantly contributed to internal exposure to benzene in both indoor and outdoor workers.
Authors: V Cocheo; P Sacco; C Boaretto; E De Saeger; P P Ballesta; H Skov; E Goelen; N Gonzalez; A B Caracena Journal: Nature Date: 2000-03-09 Impact factor: 49.962
Authors: L A Wallace; E D Pellizzari; T D Hartwell; C Sparacino; R Whitmore; L Sheldon; H Zelon; R Perritt Journal: Environ Res Date: 1987-08 Impact factor: 6.498
Authors: Scott M Arnold; Juergen Angerer; Peter J Boogaard; Michael F Hughes; Raegan B O'Lone; Steven H Robison; A Robert Schnatter Journal: Crit Rev Toxicol Date: 2013-02 Impact factor: 5.635
Authors: Piero Lovreglio; Anna Barbieri; Mariella Carrieri; Laura Sabatini; Maria Enrica Fracasso; Denise Doria; Ignazio Drago; Antonella Basso; Maria Nicolà D'Errico; Giovanni Battista Bartolucci; Francesco Saverio Violante; Leonardo Soleo Journal: Int Arch Occup Environ Health Date: 2009-10-14 Impact factor: 3.015
Authors: Ahmad Salimi; Mehrdad Vaghar-Moussavi; Enayatollah Seydi; Jalal Pourahmad Journal: Environ Sci Pollut Res Int Date: 2016-01-22 Impact factor: 4.223
Authors: Perrine Hoet; Erika De Smedt; Massimo Ferrari; Marcello Imbriani; Luciano Maestri; Sara Negri; Peter De Wilde; Dominique Lison; Vincent Haufroid Journal: Int Arch Occup Environ Health Date: 2008-11-14 Impact factor: 3.015