Polybrominated diphenyl ethers in blood from Korean incinerator workers and general population.
This study was conducted to examine PBDE exposure in Koreans, with a special focus on incinerator workers due to their potential for occupational exposure to PBDEs. A total of 92 blood samples from 30 incinerator workers, 51 nearby residents and 11 controls were analyzed. The mean total PBDE concentration calculated from the 13 most concentrated congeners for all samples was 16.84+/-7.48 ng/g lipid, which was somewhat higher concentration than in other countries except North America and Canada. The PBDE levels and congener profiles detected in incinerator workers were not distinctly different from those found in the general population. In all groups tested, BDE-47 was dominant (mean contribution=32.5%) followed by BDE-153 (23.6%) and relatively high portions of BDE-183 (16.5%) were found. No strong trend was observed between PBDE levels and a number of key biological factors examined in this study, however, weak correlations were observed in PBDE levels measured against dietary habits, particularly in fish consumption frequency and gender. Overall, our data suggest that the occupational exposure of incinerator workers to PBDEs can be considered minor, while other lifestyle factors can have a greater contribution to PBDE exposure.
Lee
Se-Jin
SJ
School of Environmental Science and Engineering, POSTECH, Pohang 790-784, Republic of Korea.
Ikonomou
Michael G
MG
Park
Hyokeun
H
Baek
Song-Yee
SY
Chang
Yoon-Seok
YS
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017745:Incineration; D007723:Korea; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000032:analysis*; D010647:Phenyl Ethers / Q000097:blood*; D011075:Polybrominated Biphenyls / Q000097:blood*; D012037:Refuse Disposal / Q000379:methods*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
D010647:Phenyl Ethers; D011075:Polybrominated Biphenyls