Abstract

As the Fire Service becomes more aware of the potential health effects from occupational exposure to hazardous contaminants, personal protective equipment (PPE) manufacturers, and fire departments have responded by developing and implementing improved means of firefighter protection, including more frequent laundering of PPE after exposures. While laboratory testing of new PPE designs and the effect of laundering on PPE fabric provides a useful way to evaluate these approaches, laboratory scale testing does not necessarily translate to full garment protection. Utilizing a fireground smoke exposure simulator, along with air and/or filter-substrate sampling for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and benzene, this pilot study tested the chemical-protective capabilities of firefighting PPE of different designs (knit hood vs. particulate-blocking hood, turnout jacket with zipper closure vs. hook & dee closure), including the impact of repeatedly exposing and cleaning (through laundering or decontamination on-scene) PPE 40 times. Overall, PAH contamination on filters under hoods in the neck region were higher (median PAHs = 14.7 µg) than samples taken under jackets in the chest region (median PAHs = 7.05 µg). PAH levels measured under particulate-blocking hoods were lower than levels found under knit hoods. Similarly, zippered closures were found to provide a greater reduction in PAHs compared to hook & dee closures. However, neither design element completely eliminated contaminant ingress. Measurements for benzene under turnout jackets were similar to ambient chamber air concentrations, indicating little to no attenuation from the PPE. The effect of laundering or on-scene decontamination on contaminant breakthrough appeared to depend on the type of contaminant. Benzene breakthrough was negatively associated with laundering, while PAH breakthrough was positively associated. More research is needed to identify PPE features that reduce breakthrough, how targeted changes impact exposures, and how fireground exposures relate to biological absorption of contaminants.

摘要

随着消防部门越来越意识到职业接触有害污染物对健康的潜在影响，个人防护装备 (PPE) 制造商和消防部门已通过开发和实施改进的消防员防护手段来应对，包括在接触后更频繁地清洗 PPE 。虽然新 PPE 设计的实验室测试以及洗涤对 PPE 织物的影响提供了评估这些方法的有用方法，但实验室规模测试并不一定能转化为全面的服装保护。这项试点研究利用火场烟雾暴露模拟器，以及对空气和/或过滤器基材进行多环芳烃 (PAH) 和苯采样，测试了不同设计的消防个人防护装备（针织罩与颗粒阻挡装置）的化学防护能力。兜帽、拉链开合的消防夹克与钩子和迪伊开合的夹克），包括反复暴露和清洁（通过现场清洗或去污）个人防护装备 40 次的影响。总体而言，颈部区域头罩下过滤器的 PAH 污染（PAH 中值 = 14.7 µg）高于胸部区域夹克下采集的样本（PAH 中值 = 7.05 µg）。在颗粒阻挡罩下测得的 PAH 水平低于针织罩下测得的水平。同样，与钩扣和丁字扣相比，拉链扣可以更大程度地减少多环芳烃。然而，这两种设计元素都没有完全消除污染物的进入。道岔夹克下苯的测量结果与环境室内空气浓度相似，表明个人防护装备几乎没有衰减。清洗或现场净化对污染物突破的影响似乎取决于污染物的类型。苯突破与洗涤呈负相关，而多环芳烃突破则呈正相关。需要更多的研究来确定减少突破的个人防护装备特征、有针对性的变化如何影响暴露，以及火场暴露与污染物的生物吸收有何关系。