Exposure to benzene in fuel distribution installations: monitoring and prevention.
The authors used a mixed-effects model on a cohort of 258 randomly chosen workers in 7 fuel-distribution facilities to examine the association between airborne benzene exposure and task and timing factors. During an 8-y period, 692 repeated personal measurements were performed. Filler task, warm month, Tuesday, credit day, and time period (1992-1996) were associated significantly with higher exposures to benzene. The authors controlled for the time period, and task type strongly affected the between-worker variance; therefore, two exposure groups (i.e., fillers and nonfillers) were adequate for purposes of exposure grouping strategy. Timing factors (after controlling for task and period effects) strongly affected the high within-worker variance (> 2 than between-worker variance). Long-term exposure would be better represented if the sample was stratified by warm/nonwarm months and if measurement days were selected randomly.
Peretz
C
C
Institute for Environmental Research, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv, Israel.
Froom
P
P
Pardo
A
A
Goren
A
A
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001554:Benzene / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000032:analysis*; D002617:Chemical Industry; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D005648:Fuel Oils; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000032:analysis / Q000517:prevention & control*; D016272:Occupational Health; D011336:Probability; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors
D005648:Fuel Oils; D001554:Benzene