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Chemical Exposures and Public Health Interventions

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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Toxicology and Public Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2022) | Viewed by 11744

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Tim Marczylo

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Guest Editor

Toxicology Department, Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Public Health England, Didcot OX11 0RQ, UK
Interests: toxicology; toxicokinetics; analytical chemistry; human biomonitoring

Dr. Samuel Collins

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Chemicals and Environmental Effects Department, Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Public Health England, Didcot OX11 0RQ, UK
Interests: CBRN; decontamination; chemical incidents; public health interventions

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The global development, distribution and use of chemicals continues to increase annually, with thousands, including toxic industrial chemicals, being manufactured and distributed in excess of one metric tonne annually. According to the Chemical Abstract Service (CAS, under the American Chemical Society) the number of unique inorganic and organic substances has more than doubled in the last six years to more than 126 million. Accompanying these increases in manufacture and distribution is an increasing risk of a chemical incident leading to human exposure and to injury from hazardous chemicals. A chemical incident is defined as “an unexpected, uncontrolled release of a chemical from its containment”. Chemical incidents may be caused by accidental (e.g., chemical spillages, fires) or deliberate (e.g., terrorist) factors. Globally, there are multiple chemical incidents involving the exposure, or potential exposure of tens of thousands of people every year. Recent accidents including the 2020 and 2015 port explosions in Beirut and Tianjin accompanied by an alarming rise in the criminal dumping of chemical waste and deliberate use of chemical agents including acid attacks, Sarin in Syria, VX in Malaysia and Novichok in the United Kingdom and Russia all highlight the ever-present threat from chemical incidents.

This special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH) focuses on the assessment of chemical incident exposures and public health interventions. We welcome papers from scientists, practitioners and policy makers dealing with novel and emerging chemical risks, the impacts of chemical incidents, mechanisms of exposure, uptake, harm, public health interventions (operational and policy-based), emergency (prehospital) interventions (e.g. decontamination) and cost benefit/health economic analyses of interventions. Other manuscript types accepted include methodological papers (in vitro, in vivo and ex vivo), position papers, brief reports, and commentaries.

Dr. Tim Marczylo
Dr. Samuel Collins
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Chemicals
Novel and emerging threats
CBRN
Chemical incident
Exposure assessment
Mechanism of exposure
Health impact
Emergency management
Decontamination
Health economics

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

Jump to: Review

9 pages, 341 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Health Risk Assessment of Trace Metals in Bottled Water Purchased from Various Retail Stores in Pretoria, South Africa

by Joshua Oluwole Olowoyo, Unathi Chiliza, Callies Selala and Linda Macheka

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(22), 15131; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph192215131 - 16 Nov 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2801

Abstract

Bottled water is one of the fastest growing commercial products in both developing and developed countries owing to the believe that it is safe and pure. In South Africa, over the years, there has been an increase in the sale of bottled water due to the perceived notion that water supplied by the government may not be safe for human consumption. This study investigated the concentrations of trace metals and the physicochemical properties of bottled water purchased from various supermarkets (registered and unregistered) in Pretoria with a view to determining the health risk that may be associated with the levels of trace metals resulting from the consumption of the bottled water. Twelve commonly available different brands of bottled water were purchased and analysed for trace-metal content using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The water samples were also analysed for various physicochemical parameters. The health risk was assessed using the target hazard quotient (THQ). For all the bottled water, the highest concentration of all the elements was recorded for Fe. The values reported for Cr, Ni and Pb were above the limit recommended by World Health Organization. The pH values ranged from 4.67 to 7.26. Three of the samples had pH values in the acidic region below the permissible standard of 6.8–8.0 set by the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA). The target hazard quotient calculated for the water samples showed a minimum risk for Pb, Cr and Ni. The study showed the need to adhere to a strict compliance standard considering the fact that South Africa has rich natural mineral elements, which may have played a role in the high levels of trace metals reported from some of the water samples. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical Exposures and Public Health Interventions)

10 pages, 6015 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Monitoring Lead Concentration in the Surrounding Environmental Components of a Lead Battery Company: Plants, Air and Effluents—Case Study, Kenya

by Jeremiah Otieno, Przemysław Kowal and Jacek Mąkinia

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(9), 5195; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph19095195 - 25 Apr 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2019

Abstract

Lead (Pb) pollution from smelters and lead–acid battery has become a serious problem worldwide owing to its toxic nature as a heavy metal. Stricter regulations and monitoring strategies have been formulated, legislated and implemented in various parts of the world on heavy metal usage. Developed countries such as the USA and in Europe largely operate within the set standards, however, developing countries such as Kenya, Nigeria and India, with limited regulatory capacity, resources and sufficient data, face poor Pb waste management and exposure of the population to health risks. This study assessed the pollution concerns from Associated Battery Manufacturers (East Africa) Limited (ABM), located in the Nairobi Industrial Area in Kenya. Samples of air, extracts from plants (leaves) and factory wastewaters were taken from different operations units, prepared and analysed with Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS). Pb traces remained fairly controlled with averages of 1.24 ± 0.42 parts per million (ppm), 1.21 ± 0.02 ppm and 0.29 ± 0.01 ppm in the air, plant extracts and effluents, respectively. The conducted research shows that the obtained lead concentrations in the air, wastewater and surrounding plants exceeded the recommended standards, and are potentially harmful not only to workers, but also to the surrounding villages. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical Exposures and Public Health Interventions)

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32 pages, 605 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Event-Based Surveillance of Poisonings and Potentially Hazardous Exposures over 12 Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic

by Meghan A. Cook and Nicholas Brooke

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(21), 11133; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph182111133 - 22 Oct 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3835

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has seen people and governments utilise an array of chemical and pharmaceutical substances in an attempt to prevent and treat COVID-19 infections. The Centre for Radiation, Chemicals and Environmental Hazards (CRCE) at Public Health England (PHE) routinely undertakes Event-Based Surveillance (EBS) to monitor public health threats and incidents related to chemicals and poisons. From April 2020, EBS functions were expanded to screen international media for potentially hazardous exposures associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Media sources reported that poisons centres were experiencing increased enquiries associated with the use and misuse of household cleaners and alcohol-based hand sanitiser (HS). There were also media reports of people self-medicating with over-the-counter supplements and traditional or herbal remedies. Public figures who directly or indirectly facilitated misinformation were sometimes reported to be associated with changes in poisoning trends. Border closures were also believed to have been associated with increasingly toxic illicit drug supplies in Canada, and record numbers of opioid-related deaths were reported. In other countries, where the sale of alcohol was banned or limited, home-brewing and methanol-based supplies resulted in a number of fatalities. At least two chemical incidents also occurred at industrial sites in India, after sites were left unattended or were closed and reopened due to lockdown measures. Reports of poisoning identified in the international media were provided to the UK National Poisons Information Service (NPIS) and contributed to the UK COVID-19 public health response. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical Exposures and Public Health Interventions)

Review

Jump to: Research

22 pages, 1677 KiB

Open AccessReview

Identification of Novel Simulants for Toxic Industrial Chemicals and Chemical Warfare Agents for Human Decontamination Studies: A Systematic Review and Categorisation of Physicochemical Characteristics

by Thomas James, Samuel Collins and Tim Marczylo

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(16), 8681; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph18168681 - 17 Aug 2021

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2225

Abstract

Chemical simulants have long been used in human trials of mass decontamination to determine the efficacy of decontamination interventions against more toxic agents. Until now, reliance has mostly been on individual chemicals as surrogates to specific agents (e.g., methyl salicylate for sulphur mustard). A literature review was conducted to identify chemicals that had been previously tested on human volunteers and that represent diverse physicochemical characteristics in order to create a repository for chemical simulants. Of the 171 unique chemicals identified, 78 were discounted for the risk they could pose to human volunteers, 39 were deemed suitable for use, and a further 54 were considered to be possible simulants but would require further research. Suitable simulants included both solid and liquid chemicals spanning a wide range of physicochemical properties including molecular weight, octanol/water partition coefficient, vapour pressure, and solubility. This review identifies an array of potential simulants suitable for use in human volunteer decontamination studies and is of relevance to future studies on systemic absorption and surface decontamination. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical Exposures and Public Health Interventions)

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