Percutaneous penetration via hand eczema is the major accelerating factor for systemic absorption of toluene and xylene during car spray painting.
BACKGROUND
For absorption of organic solvents, the respiratory tract is well known as the major site, but percutaneous absorption might be critical in some workplaces.


OBJECTIVE
The aim of the study is to determine whether the skin, if disordered, is 1 of the major routes of organic solvent absorption.


METHODS
72 male workers who painted the car body in the booth of a Japanese car company were participated in this study. The severity of hand eczema, urinary metabolites of organic solvents and the concentration of airborne organic solvents were measured.


RESULTS
The correlation coefficiency between the skin severity index and the urinary concentration of hippuric acid or methylhippuric acid was statistically significant. There was no significant correlation between their urinary values and the air concentration of mixed organic solvents.


CONCLUSIONS
The skin is a more critical absorption route for organic solvents than the respiratory tract in some occupational settings. Hand eczema is a common disease and has a possibility to be a critical absorption route of organic solvents.
Hino
Ryosuke
R
Department of Dermatology, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Kitakyushu, Japan. hinoti@med.uoeh-u.ac.jp
Nishio
Daisuke
D
Kabashima
Kenji
K
Tokura
Yoshiki
Y
D001336:Automobiles; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004485:Eczema / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology / Q000652:urine; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D006626:Hippurates / Q000652:urine; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D010150:Paint; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012869:Skin Absorption; D012997:Solvents / Q000378:metabolism*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D014050:Toluene / Q000378:metabolism*; D014992:Xylenes / Q000378:metabolism*
D006626:Hippurates; D012997:Solvents; D014992:Xylenes; D014050:Toluene; C030514:hippuric acid