Abstract
The aim of occupational health practice is to prevent adverse health effects of exposure at work. Such exposure arises from inhalation of dusts, fumes and gases, from ingestion or by dermal absorption. The respiratory tract is the main portal of entry, and this is reflected in the occupational exposure limits (OELs) adopted in a number of countries. These are usually expressed as time-weighted averages on the basis of an 8-h day over a 40-h week. Because of the wide variations in industrial practices from industry to industry and from individual to individual, the measurement of atmospheric concentrations (environmental monitoring, EM), using a personal sampler, does not necessarily give a correct assessment of the intake of any given systemic chemical. In these circumstances, biological monitoring (BM) is in many cases preferable, as it provides an integrated measurement of absorption from all routes of entry. Moreover, it makes is possible in principle to estimate the concentration in the critical organ. In addition, BM takes into account intra- and interindividual variation in biotransformation and elimination processes.
The Organizing Committee of the Workshop delegated the writing of this report to: R. Murray (Chairman-rapporteur), V. J. Feron, R. F. M. Herber, W. J. Hunter, A. C. Monster, W. R. F. Notten and R. L. Zielhuis.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Berlin A, Yodaiken RE, Herman BA (1984) Assessment of toxic agents at the work-place; roles of ambient and biological monitoring. Nijhoff, Boston
Sherwin PR (1983) What is an adverse health effect? Environ Health Perspect 52: 177–182
WHO (1978) Principles and methods for evaluating the toxicity of chemicals, Part 1, Environmental Health Criteria 6. WHO, Geneva
WHO (1981) Quality control in the occupational toxicology laboratory. Interim document 4. WHO, Regional Office Europe, Copenhagen
Zielhuis RL, Henderson PT (1986) Definitions of monitoring activities and their relevance for the practice of occupational health. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 57: 249–257
Zielhuis RL, Notten WFR (1979) Permissible levels for occupational exposure, basic concept. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 42: 269–281
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1988 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this paper
Cite this paper
Notten, W.R.F., Hunter, W.J., Herber, R.F.M., Monster, A.C., Zielhuis, R.L. (1988). Summary Report, Conclusions and Recommendations. In: Notten, W.R.F., Hunter, W.J., Herber, R.F.M., Monster, A.C., Zielhuis, R.L. (eds) Health Surveillance of Individual Workers Exposed to Chemical Agents. International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health Supplement. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-73476-2_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-73476-2_1
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-19016-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-642-73476-2
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive