Esposizione a composti organici volatili nella popolazione generale dell’area milanese : caratterizzazione del profilo di esposizione attraverso la misura dei composti non metabolizzati nell’urina

Urban air pollution is a potential risk factor for the health of resident population. Among the pollutants that may pose an hazard to health, there are volatile organic compounds (VOC). Aim of this work was the determination of exposure to VOCs such as benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes (BTEX), methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), ethyl tert-butyl ether (ETBE) and naphthalene in 148 subjects (54 smokers) of the general population of the metropolitan area of Milan by environmental and biological monitoring. Median personal exposure was: benzene 4, toluene 25, ethylbenzene 4, m + p-xylene 9, o-xylene, MTBE 3, ETBE 1, and naphthalene 3 µg/m3. Median urinary levels were: benzene 140, toluene 397, ethylbenzene 74, m+p-xylene 127, o-xylene 43, MTBE 49, ETBE 11, and naphthalene 44 ng/L. Urinary benzene and toluene resulted higher in smokers than in non-smokers, moreover indoor workers and people reaching job places by public transportation had lower urinary VOC values than outdoor workers and people using private cars. Significant correlations between environmental exposure and biological markers were observed. Urinary VOC permitted to profile exposure in the general population and to identify principal sources; cigarette smoking exerted a great influence on internal dose of benzene and increased also toluene.