title: Health effects of laser printer emissions: a controlled exposure study.
abstract: Ultrafine particles emitted from laser printers are suspected to elicit adverse health effects. We performed 75-minute exposures to emissions of laser printing devices (LPDs) in a standardized, randomized, cross-over manner in 23 healthy subjects, 14 mild, stable asthmatics, and 15 persons reporting symptoms associated with LPD emissions. Low-level exposures (LLE) ranged at the particle background (3000 cm-3) and high-level exposures (HLE) at 100 000 cm-3. Examinations before and after exposures included spirometry, body plethysmography, transfer factors for CO and NO (TLCO, TLNO), bronchial and alveolar NO, cytokines in serum and nasal secretions (IL-1β, IL-5, IL-6, IL-8, GM-CSF, IFNγ, TNFα), serum ECP, and IgE. Across all participants, no statistically significant changes occurred for lung mechanics and NO. There was a decrease in volume-related TLNO that was more pronounced in HLE, but the difference to LLE was not significant. ECP and IgE increased in the same way after exposures. Nasal IL-6 showed a higher increase after LLE. There was no coherent pattern regarding the responses in the participant subgroups or single sets of variables. In conclusion, the experimental acute responses to short but very high-level LPD exposures were small and did not indicate clinically relevant effects compared to low particle number concentrations.
authors.affiliation: Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Inner City Clinic, University Hospital of Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.|Institute of Epidemiology I, Helmholtz Zentrum München - German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.
authors.forename: S
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-9807-2915
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Karrasch
authors.affiliation: Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Inner City Clinic, University Hospital of Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Simon
authors.affiliation: Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Inner City Clinic, University Hospital of Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Herbig
authors.affiliation: Division Materials and Air Pollutants, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Langner
authors.affiliation: Division Materials and Air Pollutants, BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Seeger
authors.affiliation: Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Inner City Clinic, University Hospital of Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kronseder
authors.affiliation: Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Inner City Clinic, University Hospital of Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Peters
authors.affiliation: Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Inner City Clinic, University Hospital of Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dietrich-Gümperlein
authors.affiliation: Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Inner City Clinic, University Hospital of Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schierl
authors.affiliation: Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Inner City Clinic, University Hospital of Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.|Comprehensive Pneumology Center Munich (CPC-M), Member of the German Center for Lung Research, Munich/Neuherberg, Germany.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Nowak
authors.affiliation: Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Inner City Clinic, University Hospital of Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.|Comprehensive Pneumology Center Munich (CPC-M), Member of the German Center for Lung Research, Munich/Neuherberg, Germany.
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Jörres
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis; D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001249:Asthma; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis*; D016287:Computer Peripherals; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000032:analysis*; D008168:Lung / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010316:Particle Size; D052638:Particulate Matter / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis; D010991:Plethysmography; D013147:Spirometry; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D015415:Biomarkers; D015850:Interleukin-6; D052638:Particulate Matter
keywords: emission; exposure; laser printer; lung function; respiratory health; ultrafine particles