title: [Health effects of exposure to oil spills].
abstract: The sinking of the oil tanker Prestige off the coast of Galicia was not only the worst ecological disaster ever to affect Spain, it also led to thousands of people who participated in the cleanup of the contaminated areas being exposed to potentially dangerous toxic substances. As the airway is one of the principal routes of entry into the body of these toxic compounds, the possible effects of exposure to such spills is of particular interest and concern to respiratory specialists. The paucity of clinical information available on the subject was the motive for this paper, which reviews the scientific studies undertaken in the aftermath of other accidents involving oil tankers and concludes with a summary of the clinical and epidemiological data published to date on the Prestige oil spill.
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Neumología, Complexo Hospitalario Universitario Juan Canalejo, A Coruña, España. GemaRodriguez@canalejo.org
authors.forename: Gema
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Trigo
authors.forename: Jan Paul
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Zock
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Isidro Montes
mesh_terms: D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D018876:Environmental Illness / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015386:Hazardous Substances / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D010578:Petroleum; D012767:Ships; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D015386:Hazardous Substances; D010578:Petroleum