Julander Anneli, Skare Lizbet, Mulder Marie, Grandér Margaretha, Vahter Marie, Lidén Carola
Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, SE 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden.
Ann Occup Hyg. 2010 Apr;54(3):340-50. doi: 10.1093/annhyg/meq002. Epub 2010 Feb 11.
Skin exposure to nickel, cobalt, and chromium may cause sensitization and allergic contact dermatitis and it is known that many alloys and platings may release significant amounts of the metals upon contact with skin. Occupational exposure to these sensitizing metals has been studied in different settings with regards to airborne dust and different biological end points, but little is known about deposition on skin from airborne dust and direct contact with materials containing the metals. In this study, skin deposition was studied in 24 workers in an industry for development and manufacturing of gas turbines and space propulsion components. The workers were employed in three departments, representing different exposure scenarios: tools sharpening of hard metal items, production of space propulsion structures, and thermal application of different metal-containing powders. A novel acid wipe sampling technique was used to sample metals from specific skin surfaces on the hands and the forehead of the workers. Total amounts of nickel, cobalt, and chromium were measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The result showed that nickel, cobalt, and chromium could be detected on all skin surfaces sampled. The highest level of nickel was 15 microg cm(-2) h(-1), the highest for cobalt was 4.5 microg cm(-2) h(-1), and for chromium 0.6 microg cm(-2) h(-1). The three departments had different exposures regarding the metals. The highest levels of nickel on the skin of the workers were found in the thermal applications department, cobalt in the tools sharpening department, and chromium in the space propulsion components department. In conclusion, the workers' exposure to the metals was more likely to come from direct skin contact with items, rather than from airborne dust, based on the fact that the levels of metals were much higher on the fingers than on the back side of the hands and the forehead. The skin exposure levels of nickel and cobalt detected are judged capable to induce sensitization and elicit allergic contact dermatitis.
皮肤接触镍、钴和铬可能会引起致敏和过敏性接触性皮炎，并且已知许多合金和镀层在与皮肤接触时可能会释放大量这些金属。关于空气中的粉尘以及不同的生物学终点，已经在不同环境中对职业接触这些致敏金属进行了研究，但对于空气中的粉尘在皮肤上的沉积以及与含这些金属的材料直接接触的情况却知之甚少。在本研究中，对一家燃气轮机和太空推进部件开发与制造行业的24名工人的皮肤沉积情况进行了研究。这些工人受雇于三个部门，代表不同的接触场景：硬质金属物品的工具磨削、太空推进结构的生产以及不同含金属粉末的热应用。采用一种新型的酸擦拭采样技术，从工人手部和额头的特定皮肤表面采集金属样本。通过电感耦合等离子体质谱法测量镍、钴和铬的总量。结果表明，在所有采样的皮肤表面都能检测到镍、钴和铬。镍的最高水平为15微克/平方厘米·小时，钴的最高水平为4.5微克/平方厘米·小时，铬的最高水平为0.6微克/平方厘米·小时。这三个部门在这些金属的接触方面存在差异。在工人皮肤表面，镍的最高水平出现在热应用部门，钴出现在工具磨削部门，铬出现在太空推进部件部门。总之，基于手指上的金属水平远高于手背和额头背面这一事实，工人接触这些金属更可能来自与物品的直接皮肤接触，而非空气中的粉尘。检测到的镍和钴的皮肤接触水平被判定有能力引发致敏并引起过敏性接触性皮炎。
