Changes in the concentration of BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, m/p-xylene and o-xylene) following environmental and occupational exposure to vapors

Ivana Sutic, Aleksandar Bulog, Ingrid Sutic, Valentino Pavisic, Ines Mrakovcic-Sutic Department of Family Medicine, Medical Faculty, University of Rijeka, Croatia Department of Public Health, Medical Faculty, University of Rijeka, Croatia Medical Faculty, University of Rijeka, Croatia Department of Physiology and Immunology, Medical Faculty, University of Rijeka, Croatia e-mail: [email protected] Abstract—Nowadays, the prevalence of environmental diseases is increasing worldwide and these diseases are an onerous burden both to the individual and to the public health. Urban air pollution represents a common and difficult problem in the majority of metropolises, which contain high levels of traffic congestion generating great amounts of genotoxic substances. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) play an important role in ecological damages, disturbing the ecosystem and human health. Although the association between COPD and urban air pollution is well established, the relationship between the concentration of BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, isomeric xylenes) and occupational and environment risk factors has not been investigated. The objectivities and methods of our study were to determine the concentration of BTEX in urine in inhabitants from urban and rural areas, as well as in workers in shipyard, who are occupationally exposed to volatile aromatic hydrocarbons. Results: people living in urban industrial fields have significantly augmented the concentration of BTEX in urine, as well as the occupationally exposed workers in shipyards. Conclusion: BTEX-analyze in urine, as an important and easy method represents a good marker in environmental monitoring which contributes better protection of air pollutants and quicker diagnosis of occupationally exposed individuals.