Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene最新文献

{"title":"Evaluation of the decontamination methods for turnout gear.","authors":"Riikka Salmi, Juha Laitinen","doi":"10.1080/15459624.2025.2555299","DOIUrl":"10.1080/15459624.2025.2555299","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Firefighters are exposed to various carcinogenic substances during firefighting tasks, but also in the maintenance of firefighting personal protective equipment (PPE). Due to multiple exposures to chemical agents via different exposure routes, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) categorized the firefighting occupation as Group 1 - carcinogenic to humans. Decontamination methods have been found to play an important role in reducing firefighter chemical exposures. Unfortunately, decontamination techniques are insufficient in removing carcinogenic substances from PPE. This study aimed to evaluate decontamination methods for firefighter turnout gear. Using various techniques, the cleaning efficiency of 18 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from turnout gear coats contaminated during firefighting exercises was measured. For turnout gear coats (<i>n</i> = 40), decontamination methods used were conventional aqueous laundering (AL) and its combination with advanced hydrogen peroxide treatment (H₂O₂) or ozone treatment in a chamber (O₃). In addition, the cleaning efficiencies of advanced liquid carbon dioxide (LCO₂) and the ozone laundry system (LO₃) were measured. Results show that when the conventional AL water wash temperature increased from 40 to 60 °C, cleaning efficiencies did not significantly increase. Cleaning efficiencies in outer layers of coats were 63% and 60%, respectively. The results in outer layers of AL combined with O₃ and H₂O₂ techniques showed cleaning efficiencies 84% and 42%, respectively. Cleaning efficiency with LO₃ and with the fully advanced LCO₂ technique demonstrated cleaning efficiency 71% and 74%, respectively. LCO₂ was the most advanced, especially in the middle layers, yielding a cleaning efficiency of 84% while other techniques in the middle layers reached a maximum efficiency 24%. The cleaning efficiency of all methods indicated approximately 20-30% lower cleaning efficiency for high molecular weight (HMW) PAHs than for low molecular weight (LMW) PAHs. The results of this study emphasized the importance of improving conventional AL and the advantage of the LCO₂ method in enhancing cleaning efficiency.</p>","PeriodicalId":16599,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene","volume":" ","pages":"548-564"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145213010","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Letter to Editor on \"Spectral frequency and broadband noise analysis of the firefighter environment: Potential implications for cardiac health\".","authors":"Sneha Thakur, Amita Aggarwal","doi":"10.1080/15459624.2026.2657308","DOIUrl":"10.1080/15459624.2026.2657308","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":16599,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene","volume":" ","pages":"511"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148055042","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"\"The Action Level^®\".","authors":"J Thomas Pierce","doi":"10.1080/15459624.2026.2732626","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15459624.2026.2732626","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":16599,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene","volume":"23 8","pages":"D23-D24"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148990316","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Spectral frequency and broadband noise analysis of the firefighter environment: Potential implications for cardiac health.","authors":"James Blando, Catherine Reed, Amya Turner","doi":"10.1080/15459624.2025.2595953","DOIUrl":"10.1080/15459624.2025.2595953","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Firefighters are well known to have elevated risk of adverse health outcomes across a wide range of diseases and injuries, including cancer, hearing loss, fatal cardiac events, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), sleep disorders, and many other adverse outcomes. It has been speculated that the noise environment is a significant risk factor for several of these diseases. In particular, the impact of noise on cardiac outcomes has recently been identified. An environmental survey of noise that included spectral and broadband analysis was conducted across all 14 firehouses in a southeastern city in the United States as a first step to investigate firefighter health and noise. An octave band analyzer was utilized to take area measurements of noise, including background, alarms, sirens, tools, and other important miscellaneous noise sources throughout these 14 firehouses, including an assessment of noise impacts on sleeping quarters. Data showed that generally the noise surveyed was highly variable, and specific frequencies were associated with specific sources. Overall, many of the noise sources in the firehouse were above a broadband sound pressure level that has been associated with an elevated stress response that may be associated with adverse cardiac impacts. There were also a number of noise sources, such as cutting tools, that had very high noise levels that could increase the risk of hearing loss. The spectral analysis also showed there were a number of sources that emitted noise frequencies in a range associated with enhanced physiological sensitivity, especially with regard to stress responses.</p>","PeriodicalId":16599,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene","volume":" ","pages":"537-547"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146018554","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Highlighting gaps in knowledge and capabilities that limit decision-making to protect the health of outdoor workers exposed to wildfire smoke.","authors":"Benjamin E Brown-Steiner, Nathan R Pavlovic, Olivia S Ryder, Eladio Knipping, Annette Rohr","doi":"10.1080/15459624.2026.2659855","DOIUrl":"10.1080/15459624.2026.2659855","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Pollutants in smoke from wildland and wildland urban interface (WUI) fires present an increasing risk to outdoor workers, field technicians, and others as the frequency and severity of these fires increase due to expansion of the WUI, changing land management practices, and climate change. Recent advancements have improved our understanding and ability to track and model wildfires, smoke plume chemistry, and associated health impacts. There are indications that smoke from burning certain fuels, including artificial materials present in many WUI fires and other biomass burned under certain conditions, may present enhanced health risks relative to smoke from typical biomass-only fires. However, large uncertainties, data gaps, and a lack of integration of available tools and datasets present substantial challenges in making recommendations and developing guidance to protect outdoor workers. Notwithstanding these uncertainties and data gaps, outdoor workers are exposed to potentially harmful wildfire pollutants with limited health protection guidance. There is a pressing need to advance the understanding of the relative risk of wildfire smoke based on the burned fuel and to provide tools to support real-time decision-making to protect the health of outdoor workers. Therefore, researchers and health professionals need to fill data gaps and develop integrated tools to provide decision-makers with clear guidance. This new guidance should be action-oriented, reflect current knowledge, and highlight remaining uncertainties. With these resources, decision makers can better strategize when and where outdoor work needs to be done to best protect those doing the work.</p>","PeriodicalId":16599,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene","volume":" ","pages":"513-519"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148031658","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Validation of a hydrogen peroxide fumigation protocol for disinfecting an ambulance vehicle.","authors":"Elisabeth Pfrommer, Steffen Schiller, Oliver Kaspari","doi":"10.1080/15459624.2025.2610691","DOIUrl":"10.1080/15459624.2025.2610691","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The aim of this study was to completely disinfect the interior of an ambulance vehicle by hydrogen peroxide fumigation. This process was validated in three subsequent test runs to ensure that bacterial spores were inactivated. Thus, test carriers containing 1 × 10⁶ spores of <i>Geobacillus stearothermophilus</i> as well as chemical indicators (strips showing a color change in the presence of hydrogen peroxide vapor) were placed in 20 different locations inside an ambulance vehicle. After testing different hydrogen peroxide fumigation protocols using a generator connected to the vehicle from the outside, we validated one protocol with a total running time of 4 hr and hydrogen peroxide concentrations of 300 to 380 ppm, which resulted in a reliable and complete inactivation of all spore carriers. Hydrogen peroxide fumigation was shown to be a suitable method to reliably disinfect an ambulance car with most of the equipment remaining inside. The results of this study suggest that hydrogen peroxide fumigation may be a feasible method to disinfect the interior of an ambulance vehicle after a biological risk situation.</p>","PeriodicalId":16599,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene","volume":" ","pages":"530-536"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146052492","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Use of undergloves to assess pathways leading to contamination on firefighters' hands.","authors":"Andrea F Wilkinson, M Christina Kander, Alexander C Mayer, I-Chen Chen, Richard M Kesler, Farzaneh Masoud, Denise L Smith, Gavin P Horn, Kenneth W Fent","doi":"10.1080/15459624.2025.2530070","DOIUrl":"10.1080/15459624.2025.2530070","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Firefighters (FFs) are occupationally exposed to many carcinogens, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Previous studies have evaluated PAH contamination on FFs' personal protective equipment (PPE), including fire gloves; however, there is a need to better understand PAH contamination that may break through fire gloves during active firefighting, donning, and doffing of PPE. Researchers in this study aimed to understand the potential contamination of FFs' hands during firefighting activities. A pilot study was conducted with 23 FFs, asking them to wear up to 3 separate sets of newly opened cotton undergloves during (1) donning, (2) simulated firefighting activities conducted in a smoky environment, and (3) doffing activities (donning and firefighting were combined for some samples). Samples were taken from the palm, index finger, and thumb areas of the cotton gloves and analyzed for PAHs. Overall, it was found that fire gloves were relatively effective at minimizing PAH exposure on the hands (undergloves) during active firefighting operations, though some PAH contamination was still present. PAH contamination was highest during the doffing of PPE and was significantly higher on the thumb and finger relative to the palm (<i>p</i> values < 0.05). PAH contamination was found in the cotton gloves during donning, even though FFs' self-contained breathing apparatuses were cleaned and the turnout gear was previously laundered, using commercial extractors. Future research could explore the potential for contaminated, decontaminated, and/or laundered gear to present contamination risks to fire personnel and investigate the use of undergloves as additional protection for FFs' skin.</p>","PeriodicalId":16599,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene","volume":" ","pages":"520-529"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12434901/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144957989","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Response to Letter to the Editor JOEH for \"Spectral frequency and broadband noise analysis of the firefighter environment: potential implications for cardiac health\" by Blando et al.","authors":"James Blando, Catherine Reed, Amya Turner","doi":"10.1080/15459624.2026.2658701","DOIUrl":"10.1080/15459624.2026.2658701","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":16599,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene","volume":" ","pages":"512"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148055108","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Persistent gas hazards partitioned from post-thermal runaway lithium-ion battery residue.","authors":"Lingmin Lin, Ofodike A Ezekoye","doi":"10.1080/15459624.2026.2649756","DOIUrl":"10.1080/15459624.2026.2649756","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Improvements in lithium-ion battery (LIB) safety rely on understanding the thermal runaway failure of the cells. Thermal abuse tests are done on LIBs to study their exothermic reaction kinetics and gaseous hazards. Typically, testing is conducted in either pressure vessels or accelerating rate calorimetry (ARC) systems. These experimental systems are often used with little cleaning between tests, raising questions about whether the accumulated or adhered vented products pose respiratory and other health concerns. Also, the guidelines on personal protective equipment (PPE) for researchers often do not specifically address hazards associated with LIB thermal abuse tests. There is a relative lack of data on what species might be re-emitted from these experimental systems and how standard PPE reduces exposure to any off-gassed species. To help answer some of these questions, this paper characterized gas emissions from a vessel containing LIB residue post-thermal runaway, detecting species including electrolyte solvents, dimethylcyclosiloxanes, and other low-volatility organic compounds. The most abundant species were ethylene carbonate (39 ppb) and propylene carbonate (34 ppb). None of the species concentrations from this well-ventilated vessel posed acute toxicity, but repeated exposure may result in chronic health impacts. Fabric samples from clothes exposed to the vessel headspace re-emit the adsorbed gases, which extends the duration of inhalation exposure for individuals. The low volatility of the species was further supported by partition coefficient values above one, indicating their persistence and dermal exposure risks. Respirator effectiveness against gases evolved from LIB residue was investigated. Suggestions on improving worker safety were given based on the results of this paper.</p>","PeriodicalId":16599,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene","volume":" ","pages":"565-578"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148055026","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Special issue on firefighter safety and health risks.","authors":"Ruiqing Shen, Aurora B Le","doi":"10.1080/15459624.2026.2732655","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15459624.2026.2732655","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":16599,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene","volume":"23 8","pages":"509-510"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148990332","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}