Exposure Assessment in Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology

by Nieuwenhuijsen, Mark J.

• ISBN13: 9780198528616
• ISBN10: 0198528612
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-09-18
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Set against a background of growing public, media and political concern about occupational and environmental health issues, and a scientific need to better understand and explain the effects of pollutants on human health, this book is a unique resource. Contributions from an expert panel of international practitioners provide a comprehensive reference on the state of the art methods and applications in the field of occupational and environmental pollution and the adverse health effects, particularly the exposure assessment in epidemiological studies. Risks associated with occupational and environmental exposure are generally small, but the exposed population, and hence the population attributable risk, may be large. To detect small risk, the exposure assessment needs to be very refined. Exposure assessment is the study of the distribution and determinants of potentially hazardous agents, and includes the estimation of intensity, duration and frequency of exposure, the variation of these indices and their determinants. The aim of this book is to develop an understanding and knowledge of exposure assessment methods and their application to substantive issues in occupational and environmental epidemiology. The emphasis is on methodological principles and good practice. It is focused on exposure assessment in both occupational and environmental epidemiology since there are many similarities but also some interesting differences. The book outlines the basic principles of exposure assessment, and examines the current status and research questions in the exposure assessment of occupational and environmental epidemiological studies of allergens, particulate matter, chlorination disinfection by-products, agricultural pesticides and radiofrequencies. The book will be of interest to all concerned with exposure assessment and epidemiology. It will be a valuable source for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in exposure assessment, occupational hygiene, environmental science, epidemiology, toxicology, biostatistics, occupational and environmental health, health risk assessment and related disciplines and a useful resource of reference for policy makers and regulators.

Table of Contents

List of abbreviations	xi
List of contributors	xiii
Section I: Methods	1	(200)
1. Introduction to exposure assessment	3	(18)
Mark J. Nieuwenhuijsen
2. Questionnaires	21	(18)
Mark J. Nieuwenkuijsen
3. Environmental measurement and modelling: introduction and source dispersion modelling	39	(16)
Roy Colvile, David Briggs, and Mark J. Nieuwenhuijsen
4. Environmental measurement and modelling: geographical information systems	55	(16)
David Briggs
5. Personal exposure monitoring	71	(14)
Mark J. Nieuwenhuijsen
6. Analysis and modelling of personal exposure	85	(18)
Alex Burdorf
7. Retrospective exposure assessment	103	(16)
Wolfgang Ahrens and Patricia Stewart
8. Exposure surrogates: job-exposure matrices, self-reports, and expert evaluations	119	(14)
Kay Teschke
9. Dermal exposure assessment	133	(18)
Sean Semple and John W. Cherrie
10. Physiologically based pharmacokinetic modelling	151	(16)
George Loizou and Martin Spendiff
11. Biological monitoring	167	(14)
Mark J. Nieuwenhuijsen and Pierre Droz
12. Exposure measurement error; consequences and design issues	181	(20)
Ben Armstrong
Section II: Current topics	201	(76)
13. Allergen exposure and occupational respiratory allergy and asthma	203	(18)
Dick Heederik
14. Particulate matter	221	(16)
Helen H. Sah
15. Exposure assessment in studies of chlorination disinfection by-products and birth outcomes	237	(14)
Mark J. Nieuwenhuijsen
16. Exposure assessment of pesticides in cancer epidemiology	251	(12)
Mustafa Dosemeci
17. Radiofrequency exposure and cancer	263	(14)
Martie van Tongeren and Philip Chadwick
Index	277