Swedish Defence Research Agency, Division of CBRN Defence and Security, Sweden.
Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency, Sweden.
Ann Work Expo Health. 2018 Feb 13;62(2):221-231. doi: 10.1093/annweh/wxx097.
Over the past 10 years, a number of safety measures for reducing firefighters' exposure to combustion particles have been introduced in Sweden. The most important measure was the reduction in the time firefighters wear suits and handle contaminated equipment after turn-outs involving smoke diving. This study was divided into two parts, those being to investigate the level of protection obtained by multiple garment layers and to assess exposure during a standardized smoke diving exercise. First, realistic work protection factors (WPFs) were calculated by comparing air concentrations of the full suite of gaseous and particle-bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) inside and outside structural ensembles, including jacket and thick base layer, during a tough fire extinguishing exercise using wood as the fuel. Second, during a standardized smoke diving exercise, exposure was assessed by measuring PAH skin deposition and levels of eight urinary PAH metabolites in 20 volunteer student firefighters before and after the exercise. The average WPF for the sum of 22 PAHs was 146 ± 33 suggesting a relatively high protective capacity but also indicating a substantial enrichment of contaminants with a risk of prolonged dermal exposure. Accordingly, in the second exercise, the median levels of skin-deposited Σ14-PAHs and urinary 1-hydroxypyrene significantly increased 5-fold (21 to 99 ng/wipe) and 8-fold (0.14 to 1.1 µmol mol-1 creatinine), respectively, post exposure. Among the PAH metabolites investigated, 1-hydroxypyrene proved to be the most useful indicator of exposure, with significantly elevated urinary levels at both 6 h and 20 h after the exercise and with the strongest correlation to dermal exposure. Metabolites from two-ring and three-ring PAHs were eliminated faster while levels of 3-hydroxy-benzo[a]pyrene did not meet the detection criteria. The results from correlation studies indicated that dermal uptake was a major route of exposure in accordance with previous findings. To summarize, this study shows that some of the newly adopted protective measures were correctly implemented, and should continue to be followed and be more widely adopted.
在过去的 10 年中，瑞典采取了多项安全措施来减少消防员接触燃烧颗粒的风险。最重要的措施是减少消防员在烟雾潜水行动后穿着防护服和处理受污染设备的时间。本研究分为两部分，分别是调查多层服装的防护效果和评估标准化烟雾潜水作业中的暴露情况。首先，在使用木材作为燃料的艰苦灭火演习中，通过比较结构套装内外气态和颗粒结合多环芳烃（PAH）的空气浓度，计算出实际工作保护系数（WPF），包括外套和厚基层。其次，在标准化烟雾潜水练习中，通过测量 20 名志愿学生消防员在练习前后的皮肤中多环芳烃的沉积量和 8 种尿中多环芳烃代谢物的水平来评估暴露情况。22 种 PAH 总和的平均 WPF 为 146 ± 33，表明具有相对较高的防护能力，但也表明污染物的富集程度较高，有延长皮肤暴露的风险。因此，在第二项运动中，皮肤沉积的Σ14-PAHs 和尿液 1-羟基芘的中位数水平分别显著增加了 5 倍（21 到 99 ng/拭子）和 8 倍（0.14 到 1.1 µmol mol-1 肌酐）。在所研究的多环芳烃代谢物中，1-羟基芘被证明是暴露的最有用指标，在运动后 6 小时和 20 小时尿液水平显著升高，与皮肤暴露的相关性最强。双环和三环 PAH 的代谢物消除得更快，而 3-羟基苯并[a]芘的水平未达到检测标准。相关性研究的结果表明，皮肤吸收是暴露的主要途径，这与以前的发现一致。总之，本研究表明，一些新采用的保护措施得到了正确实施，应继续遵循并更广泛地采用。
