Using urinary 1-hydroxypyrene concentrations to evaluate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure in women using biomass combustion as main energy source Article uri icon

abstract

  • Context: The use of solid fuels for cooking and heating is likely to be the largest source of indoor air pollution on a global scale. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the urinary excretion of 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHP) in women living in a rural community, where biomass combustion is used as main energy source during a working day. Materials and methods: The study was performed on urine samples collected in 2012, of 30 healthy women who were residents of a rural community in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Urine was collected from each woman at three time points (morning, post-lunch and evening) during a working day. The analysis of urinary 1-OHP was performed using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Also, a health-risk assessment was conducted. Results: The highest levels of 1-OHP in this study were found in the samples taken in the evening (geometric mean ± SD; 0.36 ± 0.13 μg/g creatinine). However, no significant differences among 1-OHP concentrations in the evening and post-lunch samples (0.27 ± 0.10 μg/g creatinine; 0.58 ± 0.67 μg/L) were observed. But, the 1-OHP levels (0.17 ± 0.13 μg/g creatinine; 0.19 ± 0.21 μg/L) found in samples collected in the morning were significantly lower than the 1-OHP levels found in samples collected during post-lunch and evening time. Discussion and conclusion: The data shown in this study demonstrated an increment in the exposure levels to PAHs in women across the shift. However, no health risk was found in this study. © 2014 Informa Healthcare USA, Inc.

publication date

  • 2015-01-01