Risk assessment related to atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in gas and particle phases near industrial sites.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Inhalation is one of the main means of human exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) because of their ubiquitous presence in the atmosphere. However, most studies have considered only PAHs found in the particle phase and have omitted the contribution of the gas-phase PAHs to the risk.

Objective

We estimated the lifetime lung cancer risk from PAH exposure by inhalation in people living next to the largest chemical site in Southern Europe and the Mediterranean area.

Methods

We determined 18 PAHs in the atmospheric gas and particle phase. We monitored the PAHs for 1 year in three locations near the chemical site in different seasons. We used toxic equivalence factors to calculate benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) equivalents (BaP-eq) for individual PAHs and app

SUBMITTER: Ramirez N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3237345 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature