Author(s)

Theodore L. Aquino, Giffe T. Johnson, Thomas Truncale, Raymond D. Harbison

Environmental and Occupational Health Department, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA.

Objective: The purpose of the investigation is to examine urinary biomarkers of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) exposure among firefighters and asphalt workers. Methods: Average concentrations of urinary PAHs were used for comparative analysis between groups of firefighters and asphalt pavers. Microsoft Excel was used to perform calculations and the t-test was utilized for statistical analysis. Results: When compared to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standard for smokers and non-smokers, firefighters demonstrated various statistically significant differences in urinary PAH concentrations. Asphalt workers had statistically significant higher urinary concentrations in three PAHs as compared to the NIST smoker mean. Conclusions: Firefighters did not demonstrate a substantial change in urinary PAH metabolite levels when compared to controls. Asphalt pavers experienced concentrations that were in some cases increased by orders of magnitude compared to controls.

PAHs, Firefighters, Asphalt Workers, Urinary Biomarkers

Aquino, T. , Johnson, G. , Truncale, T. and Harbison, R. (2017) Comparison of Urinary PAHs among Firefighters and Asphalt Pavers. Occupational Diseases and Environmental Medicine, 5, 39-46. doi: 10.4236/odem.2017.52004.