Occupational Lead Exposure: Blood Lead Levels of Apprentices in Bursa, Turkey

Pala, Kayıhan; Türkkan, Alpaslan; Güçer, Şeref; Osman, Erdinç; Aytekin, Hamdi

doi:10.2486/indhealth.47.97

Cited by 17 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…This clearly indicates that auto-garage workers are more likely to be exposed to lead due to occupational incidences than the general population. Furthermore, the results obtained in our study are consistent with the results of other studies carried out on the determination of the BLLs of: ninety-seven occupationally and non-occupationally exposed individuals in Nigeria [20], workers involved in various types of jobs in the United Arab Emirates [21], thirty one male non-smoking industrial workers in Iran [22], and apprentices working in lead-related industries in Turkey [6]. Among the lead-exposed garage workers, the mean BLL of individuals who were mainly involved in manual auto painting (21.12 ± 5.59 μg/dL) was slightly higher than that of the mechanics (19.19 ± 4.08 μg/dL).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…Many people working for different manufacturing or service rendering organizations such as battery manufacturing workers, gas-station attendants, radiator repair workers, solderers of lead products, and welders, are involved in jobs which expose them to gradual health risks from exposure to lead without having any idea about the materials they are handling. Due to lack of awareness about their exposure, workers usually eat, smoke or drink while at work and such workplace practices may aggravate their exposure [6,7]. …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Occupational lead exposure among automotive garage workers – a case study for Jimma town, Ethiopia

Adela

Ambelu

Tessema

2012

J Occup Med Toxicol

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BackgroundIn Ethiopia, although there are numerous small-scale and medium industries which use lead-based raw materials that may pose health risks to workers, there are no workplace regulations for lead exposure. Moreover, there are no studies carried out on the blood lead levels (BLLs) of workers or on the contribution of common workplace practices to lead poisoning.MethodA cross-sectional study on the BLLs of 45 automotive garage workers and 40 non-garage workers was carried out in the town of Jimma, Ethiopia. In addition to BLL analysis, data on some risk factors such as smoking, and chewing ‘khat’ (the leaves of Catha adulis) were gathered through structured questionnaires and interviews and data analysis was performed using SPSS (version 16). The t-test was used to compare mean BLLs of study groups. The analysis of variance (ANOVA), Kruskal-Wallis, Pearson chi-square and odds ratio tests were used to investigate the associations between specific job type, smoking and/or ‘khat’ chewing, service years and occurrence of non-specific symptoms with BLLs.ResultsThe mean BLL of the automotive-garage workers was found to be significantly greater than that of the controls. The BLLs of all the lead-exposed individuals were found to be over 10 μg/dL, and 53% of them had BLLs ranging 12 – 20 μg/dL, with the remaining 47% having over 20 μg/dL. The BLL of the workers increased with the duration of working in an automotive garage.Individuals involved in manual car painting comprise a larger percentage (58%) of those with the highest BLLs (≥ 20 μg/dL). Lead accumulation in individuals who chew ‘khat’ in the work place was found to be faster than in those who are not used to chewing ‘khat’. ‘Khat’ is an evergreen shrub native to tropical East Africa, with dark green opposite leaves which are chewed when fresh for their stimulating effects.ConclusionThe findings of the study have clearly demonstrated that the BLLs of automotive-garage workers in Jimma town are considerably high with a range of 11.73 – 36.52 μg/dL and the workers are in danger of impending lead toxicity. The BLLs of the workers are influenced by their occupational practices, chewing Catha adulis leaves at the workplace, and the time spent working in an automotive garage.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Occupational lead exposure among automotive garage workers – a case study for Jimma town, Ethiopia

Adela

Ambelu

Tessema

2012

J Occup Med Toxicol

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“…Furthermore, in the previous studies, a negative correlation was demonstrated between the blood values of Pb and the values of Hb and MCV. 13,14 Lead exposures are known to have obvious effects both on the thyroid function tests and TSH levels depending on the impairment of balanced functioning of the pituitaryethyroid axis. 15,16 On evaluation of the thyroid function tests in our study, fT3 values was found significantly higher and TSH values lower in the patient group than in the controls.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of the hematological and biochemical parameters related to lead intoxication

Yilmaz

Keten²,

Karacaoğlu

et al. 2012

Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine

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“…It has also been reported that many people working for different manufacturing or service rendering organizations are involved in jobs which expose them to gradual health risks from exposure to lead without having any idea about the materials they are handling (Adela et al, 2012). Inadequate awareness about their exposure has made these categories of workers eat, smoke and/or drink while at work and such workplace practices may also aggravate their exposure (Pala et al 2009;Grandjean et al, 1981). Lead poisoning may be seen in mechanic villages as an environmental and occupational health hazard and a study conducted among occupationally exposed artisans and control subjects in Nnewi revealed an elevated blood lead levels in both groups (Dioka et al, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blood Lead Levels among Automobile Mechanics in a Megacity, Lagos, Nigeria

Adejumo¹,

Olaiya²,

Sridhar³

2017

IJHS

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This study assessed blood lead and Packed Cell Volume (PCV) levels among automobile mechanics in Agidingbi, Ikeja Local Government Area of Lagos. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 37 consented automobile mechanics at a mechanic village in the study setting. Interviews were conducted using a semi-structured questionnaire while blood samples were collected through antecubital fossa. Respondents' mean age was 29 ± 11 years, 64.9% were single while 37.8% were operating as a master of the facility. Some 48.6% occasionally experienced headaches while 35.1% and 29.7% experienced tiredness and abdominal pain, respectively. Most (97.3%) have not heard about lead poisoning, 91.9% did not wear any personal protective equipment (PPE) and 89.2% did not wear apron during practice. The mean blood lead level and PCV% were 4.4±2and 38.7±3.8 respectively. PCV and years of professional practice significantly reflected in blood lead level (R 2 =0.679, p<0.001) while years of professional experience independently predicted blood lead level (R 2 adjusted=0.656, p<0.001) when adjusted for age and level of operation. Although, the blood lead level was relatively low to warrant public health concerns, but the use of PPE was poor. Regular use of PPE is encouraged to prevent exposure to lead among automobile mechanics.

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Occupational Lead Exposure: Blood Lead Levels of Apprentices in Bursa, Turkey

Cited by 17 publications

References 18 publications

Occupational lead exposure among automotive garage workers – a case study for Jimma town, Ethiopia

Occupational lead exposure among automotive garage workers – a case study for Jimma town, Ethiopia

Analysis of the hematological and biochemical parameters related to lead intoxication

Blood Lead Levels among Automobile Mechanics in a Megacity, Lagos, Nigeria

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