title: Occupational exposure to airborne lead in Brazilian police officers.
abstract: Shooting with lead-containing ammunition in indoor firing ranges is a known source of lead exposure in adults. Police officers may be at risk of lead intoxication when regular training shooting exercises are yearly mandatory to law enforcement officers. Effects on health must be documented, even when low-level elemental (inorganic) lead exposure is detected. Forty police officers (nineteen cadets and twenty-one instructors) responded to a questionnaire about health, shooting habits, and potential lead exposure before a training curse. Blood samples were collected and analyzed for blood lead level (BLL) before and after a three days training curse. The mean BLL for the instructors' group was 5.5 μg/dL ± 0.6. The mean BLL for the cadets' group before the training was 3.3 μg/dL ± 0.15 and after the training the main BLL was 18.2 μg/d L± 1.5. Samples were analyzed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS). All the participants in the training curse had significantly increased BLL (mean increment about 15 μg/dL) after the three days indoor shooting season. In conclusion, occupational lead exposure in indoor firing ranges is a source of lead exposure in Brazilian police officers, and appears to be a health risk, especially when heavy weapons with lead-containing ammunition are used in indoor environments during the firing training seasons.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Medicina Legal y Ciencias Forenses, Laboratorio de Evidencia Traza, Calle 7 A No. 12-61, Bogotá, Colombia. Electronic address: ediaz1964@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Ernesto Díaz
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Rocha
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares - IPEN-CNEN/SP, Grupo de Caracterização Química e Isotópica, Cidade Universitária Armando Salles de Oliveira - USP, Travessa R, Número 400-Caixa Postal 11049, 05508-900 São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Jorge E Souza
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Sarkis
authors.affiliation: Instituto Adolfo Lutz, Núcleo de Contaminantes Inorgânicos, Centro de Contaminantes, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Maria de Fátima H
authors.initials: Mde F
authors.lastname: Carvalho
authors.affiliation: Escola de Educação Física da Polícia Militar do Estado de São Paulo, Avenida Cruzeiro do Sul, 548, Canindé, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Gerson Vechio Dos
authors.initials: GV
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.affiliation: Escola de Educação Física da Polícia Militar do Estado de São Paulo, Avenida Cruzeiro do Sul, 548, Canindé, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Claudemir
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Canesso
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor / Q000032:analysis*; D001938:Brazil; D005389:Firearms; D006801:Humans; D007854:Lead / Q000032:analysis*; D008875:Middle Aged; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000032:analysis*; D016495:Police
chemical_list: D007854:Lead
keywords: Blood lead level; Firearms; Gunshot residues; Indoor occupational exposure; Police training