Korean J Occup Environ Med.  2010 Mar;22(1):11-19.

Health Effect Assessment on Volunteers Involved in the Cleanup Operation Following the Hebei Spirit Oil Spill Along the Taean Coast, Korea

• Lee CH
• Park KH
• Lee MJ
• Choi WH
• Kim H
• Park CH
• Kim DS
• Yu SD

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
The objetive of this study is to assess the level of oxidative stress by the exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in volunteers who cleaned up the crude oil spilled from the Hebei Spirit on the Coast of Taean County, Korea.
METHODS
The study subjects were 46 volunteers and 37 controls from the National Institute of Environmental Research. A self-administered questionnaire was used for volunteers to examine their working environment and health effects. Urinary concentrations of hippuric acid, 1-hydroxypyrene, and 2-naphthol were measured as exposure markers for VOCs and PAHs, and urinary thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) levels were measured as oxidative stress markers.
RESULTS
Sixty-four percent of the respondents presented a variety of symptoms, including sore eyes and throat, nausea, dizziness, headache, low back pain, and leg pain after participating in the cleanup operation. Urinary 2-naphthol and TBARS concentrations appeared higher in the volunteers. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that urinary TBARS and 8-OHdG levels were positively correlated with urinary 2-naphthol and 1-hydroxypyrene concentrations respectively, especially among the volunteers.
CONCLUSIONS
The result implies that participating in cleanup work of oil spills may have a possibility to induce oxidative damage by exposure to PAHs in crude oil.

Keyword

8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine; Oil spill; Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon; Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances; Volatile organic compound

MeSH Terms

Data Collection
Deoxyguanosine
Dizziness
Eye
Headache
Hippurates
Korea
Leg
Low Back Pain
Multivariate Analysis
Naphthols
Nausea
Oxidative Stress
Petroleum
Petroleum Pollution
Pharynx
Polycyclic Hydrocarbons, Aromatic
Pyrenes
Questionnaires
Thiobarbiturates
Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances
Volatile Organic Compounds
Deoxyguanosine
Hippurates
Naphthols
Petroleum
Polycyclic Hydrocarbons, Aromatic
Pyrenes
Thiobarbiturates
Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances
Volatile Organic Compounds