title: Reliability and validity of expert assessment based on airborne and urinary measures of nickel and chromium exposure in the electroplating industry.
abstract: The reliability and validity of six experts' exposure ratings were evaluated for 64 nickel-exposed and 72 chromium-exposed workers from six Shanghai electroplating plants based on airborne and urinary nickel and chromium measurements. Three industrial hygienists and three occupational physicians independently ranked the exposure intensity of each metal on an ordinal scale (1-4) for each worker's job in two rounds: the first round was based on responses to an occupational history questionnaire and the second round also included responses to an electroplating industry-specific questionnaire. The Spearman correlation (r(s)) was used to compare each rating's validity to its corresponding subject-specific arithmetic mean of four airborne or four urinary measurements. Reliability was moderately high (weighted kappa range=0.60-0.64). Validity was poor to moderate (r(s)=-0.37-0.46) for both airborne and urinary concentrations of both metals. For airborne nickel concentrations, validity differed by plant. For dichotomized metrics, sensitivity and specificity were higher based on urinary measurements (47-78%) than airborne measurements (16-50%). Few patterns were observed by metal, assessment round, or expert type. These results suggest that, for electroplating exposures, experts can achieve moderately high agreement and (reasonably) distinguish between low and high exposures when reviewing responses to in-depth questionnaires used in population-based case-control studies.
authors.affiliation: Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Yu-Cheng
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: 1] Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA [2] Formerly of the National Cancer Institute; currently 1412 Harmony Lane, Annapolis, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Joseph B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Coble
authors.affiliation: Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Nicole C
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Deziel
authors.affiliation: Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Bu-Tian
authors.initials: BT
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.affiliation: Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Shouzheng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Municipal Center for Disease Control, 1380 Zhongshan Road, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Formerly of the National Cancer Institute; Stewart Exposure Assessments, LLC, Arlington, Virginia, USA.
authors.forename: Patricia A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Stewart
authors.affiliation: Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Melissa C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Friesen
mesh_terms: D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational / Q000032:analysis*; D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor / Q000032:analysis; D002681:China; D002857:Chromium / Q000032:analysis* / Q000652:urine; D004595:Electroplating; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*; D005104:Expert Testimony; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D007221:Industry; D009532:Nickel / Q000032:analysis* / Q000652:urine; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000032:analysis*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational; D002857:Chromium; D009532:Nickel
references.citation: J Occup Environ Hyg. 2007 May;4(5):375-90
references.pmid: 17454505
references.citation: Occup Environ Med. 2002 Sep;59(9):575-93; discussion 594
references.pmid: 12205230
references.citation: Occup Environ Med. 2012 Oct;69(10):752-8
references.pmid: 22843440
references.citation: Ann Occup Hyg. 2012 Jan;56(1):70-9
references.pmid: 21989165
references.citation: Ann Occup Hyg. 2013 Jan;57(1):77-97
references.pmid: 22952385
references.citation: Am J Ind Med. 2003 May;43(5):519-22
references.pmid: 12704624
references.citation: J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2014 Jan-Feb;24(1):9-16
references.pmid: 22910004
references.citation: Scand J Work Environ Health. 1996 Dec;22(6):425-32
references.pmid: 9000309
references.citation: Ann Occup Hyg. 2004 Apr;48(3):277-83
references.pmid: 15059804
references.citation: Environ Health Perspect. 2006 Apr;114(4):542-6
references.pmid: 16581543
references.citation: Med Lav. 1988 Sep-Oct;79(5):363-7
references.pmid: 3252127
references.citation: Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 1998 Jul;71(5):348-52
references.pmid: 9749974
references.citation: Occup Environ Med. 1999 Mar;56(3):145-51
references.pmid: 10448321
references.citation: Ann Occup Hyg. 2011 Jul;55(6):601-11
references.pmid: 21511891
references.citation: Ann Occup Hyg. 2012 Jan;56(1):80-91
references.pmid: 21976309
references.citation: Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 2008 Jan;81(3):321-9
references.pmid: 17605030
references.citation: Scand J Work Environ Health. 2001 Dec;27(6):395-401
references.pmid: 11800327
references.citation: Am J Ind Med. 1990;18(1):1-17
references.pmid: 2378366
references.citation: Am J Ind Med. 1987;12(5):551-62
references.pmid: 3687951
references.citation: Br J Ind Med. 1986 Oct;43(10):667-76
references.pmid: 3778837
references.citation: Int J Epidemiol. 1997 Jun;26(3):635-42
references.pmid: 9222790
references.citation: Am Ind Hyg Assoc J. 1998 Jan;59(1):39-44
references.pmid: 9438334
references.citation: J Occup Med. 1979 Mar;21(3):184-8
references.pmid: 438908
references.citation: Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 1993;64(7):509-14
references.pmid: 8482592
references.citation: Am J Ind Med. 1997 Mar;31(3):280-6
references.pmid: 9055950
references.citation: Am J Epidemiol. 1997 Jun 15;145(12):1076-88
references.pmid: 9199537
references.citation: Scand J Work Environ Health. 2002 Dec;28(6):371-85
references.pmid: 12539797
references.citation: J Occup Environ Hyg. 2011 Dec;8(12):718-28
references.pmid: 22074298
references.citation: Am J Ind Med. 1988;14(6):703-13
references.pmid: 3232688
references.citation: Sci Total Environ. 1994 Sep 30;155(1):83-6
references.pmid: 7973613
references.citation: J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2009 Jul;19(5):443-57
references.pmid: 19277070
references.citation: J Natl Cancer Inst. 1981 Feb;66(2):217-25
references.pmid: 6935472
references.citation: Scand J Work Environ Health. 2000 Feb;26(1):44-51
references.pmid: 10744177
references.citation: Int J Environ Health Res. 2010 Aug;20(4):271-87
references.pmid: 20645201
references.citation: Ann Occup Hyg. 2009 Jun;53(4):311-24
references.pmid: 19332428
references.citation: Ann Occup Hyg. 1978 Aug;21(2):105-12
references.pmid: 697263
references.citation: Scand J Work Environ Health. 1989 Dec;15(6):424-9
references.pmid: 2617258
references.citation: Occup Environ Med. 2007 Sep;64(9):582-8
references.pmid: 17227837
references.citation: Birth Defects Res A Clin Mol Teratol. 2006 Nov;76(11):811-24
references.pmid: 17044050
references.citation: Epidemiology. 2003 Sep;14(5):585-92
references.pmid: 14501274
references.citation: Int J Epidemiol. 1998 Apr;27(2):269-73
references.pmid: 9602409
references.citation: Ann Occup Hyg. 1997 Apr;41(2):167-88
references.pmid: 9155238
references.citation: J Occup Environ Hyg. 2009 Sep;6(9):530-41
references.pmid: 19544177
references.citation: Biometrics. 1977 Mar;33(1):159-74
references.pmid: 843571