Biological Monitoring of Pyrethroid Exposure of Pest Control Workers in Japan

Abstract

Biological Monitoring of Pyrethroid Exposure of Pest Control Workers in Japan: Dong WANG, et al. Department of Radiological and MedicalLaboratory Sciences, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine-Synthetic pyrethroids such as cypermethrin, deltamethrin and permethrin, which are usually used in pest control operations, are metabolized to 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (3-PBA) and excreted in urine. Though 3-PBA can be used to assess exposure to pyrethroids, there are few reports describing urinary 3-PBA levels in Japan. This study aimed to investigate the seasonal variation of the exposure levels of pyrethroids and the concentration of urinary 3-PBA among pest control operators (PCOs) in Japan. The study subjects were 78 and 66 PCOs who underwent a health examination in December 2004 and in August 2005, respectively. 3-PBA was determined using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The geometric mean concentration of urinary 3-PBA in winter (3.9 µg/ g creatinine) was significantly lower than in summer (12.2 µg/g creatinine) (p<0.05). Geometric mean concentrations of urinary 3-PBA in the spraying workers and the not-spraying workers within 2 d before the survey were 5.4 µg/g creatinine and 0.9 µg/g creatinine for winter with a significant difference between the groups (p<0.05), and 12.3 µg/g creatinine and 8.7 µg/ g creatinine for summer (p>0.05), respectively. A significant association of 3-PBA levels and pyrethroid Field Studyspraying was thus observed only in winter. In conclusion, the results of the present study show that the exposure level of pyrethroids among PCOs in Japan assessed by monitoring urinary 3-PBA was higher than that reported in the UK but comparable to that in Germany. Further research should be accumulated to establish an occupational reference value in Japan. (J Occup Health 2007; 49: 509-514)

Urinary excretion of 3-phenoxybenzoic acid in middle-aged and elderly general population of Japan

“…In our previous study, the GM of 3-PBA levels in urine collected from Japanese pest control operators in summer was 12.2 μg/g creatinine (Wang et al, 2007), > 30-fold higher than GMs obtained in the present study. These results clearly indicated dramatically high levels of exposure among pest control operators in comparison with the non-spraying population.…”

“…In our previous study, 3-PBA has been quantified in the urine of pest control operators (PCOs) exposed to PYR during handling, mixing, and spraying (Wang et al, 2007). In the absence of data on the urinary 3-PBA levels derived from non-occupational PYR exposure, however, we considered that risks resulting from PYR exposures among PCOs might not be adequately assessed.…”

Relationship between dietary habits and urinary concentrations of 3-phenoxybonzoic acid in a middle-aged and elderly general population in Japan

“…The urinary 3-PBA levels among Japanese pest control operators (PCOs) have been previously reported by our colleagues [33], who found that the geometric means of 3-PBA c concentrations in their study population of PCOs, who had been occupationally exposed to PYRs, were 12.2 lg/g creatinine in the summer and 3.9 lg/g creatinine in the winter. These levels clearly indicate that such workers were exposed to higher doses of PYRs than the individuals of our study population.…”

Analysis and evaluation of pyrethroid exposure in human population based on biological monitoring of urinary pyrethroid metabolites

“…These values are of course generally lower than those detected in populations with occupational exposure; geometric means of urinary 3-PBA of pest control operators (PCOs) who sprayed PYRs within 2 days before urine collection were 12.3 mg/g creatinine (range, ϽLOD-226) for summer season and 5.5 mg/g creatinine (range, ϽLOD-76) for winter. 47) Hardt and Angerer 48) have reported that the median levels of urinary 3-PBA in agriculture workers (nϭ19, 24 urine samples), PCOs (nϭ15, 29 urine samples) and greenhouse workers (nϭ2, 7 urine samples) were 0.6 mg/l (range, ϽLOD-28.5), 1.4 mg/l (range, ϽLOD-57.5) and 2.9 mg/l (range, ϽLOD-26.0), respectively. It should be emphasized that reference values are merely statistically derived without consideration of the health status and thus cannot be used to discuss causal relationships between exposure and health outcomes of the individuals.…”