OBJECTIVES To evaluate the association of urinary 2-naphthol level and air pollution caused by exposure to smoking, traffic and residential factors. METHODS The study subjects consisted of 300 university students in Incheon. The questionnaires concerning subject characteristics, smoking amount, traffic, distance between housing and main road, heating and cooking fuel including urinary cotinine levels were checked. RESULTS There was not any significant association between urinary 2-naphthol level and age, sex, body mass index, distance from mainroad, traffic, heating and cooking fuel. The urinary 2-naphthol level was higher in smokers or high urinary cotinine level group(p=0.0001)than in nonsmokers or low urinary cotinine group. After adjusting for age, sex, and body mass index in the basic model, the 2-naphthol level was also higher in the smokers or high urinary cotinine level group, too(p<0.0005). The model included both traffic and residential variables and it had a good fitness as compared to other models. CONCLUSIONS It has been known that as one of PAH metabolites, urinary 2-naphthol is a respiration-selective biological marker. We showed that tabacco smoking has a much stronger effects on urinary 2-naphthol levels than when subjects were exposed to air pollution, such as traffic, and other residential factors at the same time.
OBJECTIVES We report a case of lung cancer (small cell carcinoma) occurring in a worker exposed to coke oven emissions. METHODS We examined the chest CT and pathologic findings of the patient. We reviewed previous environmental measurements for coke oven emissions at the workers place of employment. Also we measured the airborne concentrations for coke oven emissions and total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the work area. Finally, we analyzed the 1-hydroxypyrene and 2-naphthol concentrations in the subjects urine and compared this with student controls. RESULTS This case was a 56-year-old male who had worked in a coke oven plant within a steel manufacturing factory for 21 years (1977-1998). The airborne concentrations of coke oven emissions at the worksite were above the permissible exposure level (0.2 mg/m3) in 45 cases (33.1%) among 136 workers. The concentrations of 1-hydroxypyrene and 2-naphthol in the subjects urine were statistically significantly elevated as compared with those of controls (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS We confirmed that the lung cancer occurring in this patient was as an occupational disease due to exposure to coke oven emissions. To prevent occupational cancer in coke oven plant workers, we must remodel the engineering procedure, begin comprehensive medical surveillance, educate workers on risks and the benefits of smoking cessation, and increase awareness of safety regulations in the workplace.
Citations
Citations to this article as recorded by
Occupational Cancers with Chemical Exposure and their Prevention in Korea: A Literature Review Kyung-Taek Rim Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention.2013; 14(6): 3379. CrossRef
Occupational Respiratory Cancer in Korea Hye-Eun Lee, Hyoung Ryoul Kim Journal of Korean Medical Science.2010; 25(Suppl): S94. CrossRef