The possible role of direct ingestion on the overall absorption of cadmium or arsenic in workers exposed to CdO or As/sub 2/O/sub 3/ dust

Journal Article · Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1982 · Am. J. Ind. Med.; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/ajim.4700030108· OSTI ID:6851547

Roels, H; Buchet, J P; Truc, J; Croquet, F; Lauwerys, R

Six volunteers (two office and four cadmium (Cd)-exposed workers, all nonsmokers) from an electric condenser factory participated in a study involving the measurement of cadmium in air and in dust, the evaluation of hand and mouth contamination by cadmium, and the determination of fecal cadmium. The mean levels of total airborne cadmium measured with static and personal samplers were for the exposed workers 9.5 and 16.7 microgram/m/sup 3/, respectively, and for the office workers 0.3 and 0.5 microgram/m3, respectively. In the office workers, hand contamination by Cd hardly changes over the workday (less than 10 microgram/hand), whereas in the exposed workers important hand contamination by Cd was observed (up to 1,200 microgram/hand during the workday and up to 300 microgram/hand before lunch or before leaving the factory). Mouth contamination by Cd is rather similar in both groups on Monday morning, but increases 20- to 50-fold on Friday afternoon in the Cd workers against a slight increase for the office workers. The concentration of Cd in the feces was not much different between Sunday and Friday in the office workers, whereas in the exposed workers it was higher on Friday than on Sunday. There is suggestive evidence from a comparative study of fecal cadmium in two Cd-exposed volunteers who carried out their jobs with and without gloves that direct cadmium intake from hand contamination may contribute to the overall Cd absorption. A limited study in a glassware factory (As/sub 2/O/sub 3/ exposure) involving the measurement of total airborne arsenic, the determination of urinary arsenic, and the evaluation of hand and mouth contamination by arsenic before and after the workshift suggests that the high urinary arsenic levels (300 microgram/g creatinine) are likely to be more related to an increased oral intake from contaminated hands than to an increased absorption from the lungs.

• Research Organization: Faculty of Medicine, University of Louvain, Brussels, Belgium
• OSTI ID: 6851547
• Journal Information: Am. J. Ind. Med.; (United States), Vol. 3:1
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ARSENIC
INGESTION
PERSONNEL MONITORING
CADMIUM
ARSENIC OXIDES
CADMIUM OXIDES
CONTAMINATION
DUSTS
FECES
HANDS
INDOOR AIR POLLUTION
INDUSTRIAL PLANTS
LUNGS
ORAL CAVITY
URINE
AIR POLLUTION
ARSENIC COMPOUNDS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BIOLOGICAL WASTES
BODY
BODY AREAS
BODY FLUIDS
CADMIUM COMPOUNDS
CHALCOGENIDES
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
ELEMENTS
INTAKE
LIMBS
MATERIALS
METALS
MONITORING
ORGANS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POLLUTION
RADIATION MONITORING
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
SEMIMETALS
WASTES
560306* - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology- Man- (-1987)