A study on the urinary metabolites of styrene exposed workers

직업적으로 스티렌에 노출된 근로자의 뇨중 대사산물에 관한 연구

Mandelic acid is the major metabolite and phenylglyoxylic acid is the minor metabolite of styrene in human. This study was conducted to investigate the correlation between exposure concentrations of styrene and concentration of the metabolites in urine The concentrations of metabolites in urine and exposure concentrations were measured in 60 workers who were occupationally exposed to styrene in FRP industry as well as paint industry and musical instrument manufacturing industry and the concentrations of metabolites in urine ware measured in 90 workers not occupationally exposed to styrene for review the background level in the unexposed population. The results obtained were as follows; 1. The mean exposure concentration is 16.6 $\pm $12.2 ppm (range 0.4-49.9ppm) in the styrene exposed workers. 2. The concentration of mandelic acid in urine collected at the end of shift from worker exposed 8 hours to 50ppm of styrene, based on extrapolation from correlation equations was 578.5 mg/g creatinine and 176.8 mg/g creatinine for next morning urine, the concentration of phenylglyoxylic acid in urine collected at the end of shift was 291.1 mg/g creatinine, 177.9 mg/g creatinine in next morning urine. In the sum of mandelic acid and phenylglyoxylic acid in the urine 870.2 mg/g creatinine in urine sampled at the end of shift corresponds to an exposure of 50ppm of styrene and 366.0 mg/g creatinine for next morning sample corresponds to 50ppm. 3. The correlation of the degree of exposed with sum concentration of mandeliacid and phenylglyoxylic acid in the urine was better(r=0.079 for end of shift, r=0.78 for next morning) than the correlation with single determinant measurement in urine(r=0.75 for mandelic acid at end of shift, r=0.73 for mandelic acid at next morning, r=0.69 for phenylglyoxylic acid at end of shift, r=0.62 for phenylglyoxylic acid at next morning). The monitoring of sum concentration of mandelic acid and phenylglyoxylic acid in urine is a valuable indicator of time weighted average daily exposure ti styrene. And the exposure standard of urinary metabolites produced by styrene should be set, in distinction urine at the end of shift from urine at next morning.