Larestan University of Medical Sciences Faculty of Evaz Health, Department of Occupational Health Engineering, Research Center for Health Sciences, Larestan, Iran.
Larestan University of Medical Sciences, School of Health, Department of Public Health, Larestan, Iran.
Arh Hig Rada Toksikol. 2022 Jul 7;73(2):107-118. doi: 10.2478/aiht-2022-73-3634.
The aim of introducing occupational exposure limits (OELs) is to use them as a risk management tool in order to protect workers' health and well-being against harmful agents at the workplace. In this review we identify OELs for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene (BTEX), and styrene concentrations in air and assess occupational exposure to these compounds through a systematic literature search of publications published in West Asian countries from 1980 to 2021. OELs for BTEX and styrene have been set in Iran and Turkey to levels similar to those in European countries and the US. The search yielded 49 full-text articles that cover studies of exposure assessment in six countries, but most (n=40) regard Iran. Average occupational exposure to benzene of workers in oil-related industries is higher than recommended OEL, while average occupational exposure to other compounds is lower than local OELs (where they exist). Currently, information about levels of occupational exposure to BTEX and styrene is insufficient in West Asian countries, which should be remedied through OEL regulation and application. Furthermore, coherent research is also needed to determine actual levels of occupational exposure, dose-responses, and the economic and technical capacity of local industries to address current issues.
引入职业接触限值（OEL）的目的是将其用作管理风险的工具，以保护工人在工作场所免受有害因素的伤害。在本次综述中，我们确定了空气中苯、甲苯、乙苯、二甲苯（BTEX）和苯乙烯的 OEL，并通过对 1980 年至 2021 年在西亚国家发表的出版物进行系统的文献检索，评估了这些化合物的职业接触情况。伊朗和土耳其制定了 BTEX 和苯乙烯的 OEL，其水平与欧洲国家和美国相似。检索结果显示，有 49 篇全文文章涵盖了对六个国家的接触评估研究，但其中大多数（n=40）来自伊朗。与推荐的 OEL 相比，石油相关行业工人的苯平均职业接触水平较高，而其他化合物的平均职业接触水平低于当地的 OEL（如果存在的话）。目前，西亚国家对 BTEX 和苯乙烯职业接触水平的信息不足，应通过 OEL 法规和应用来加以解决。此外，还需要进行一致的研究，以确定实际的职业接触水平、剂量反应以及当地产业解决当前问题的经济和技术能力。
