Exposure to Respirable Particulate Matter and Its Association with Respiratory Outcomes in Beauty Salon Personnel.

We aimed to assess exposure to respirable particulate matter (PM) of beauty salon personnel, identify its determinants and ascertain the associated respiratory effects. We collected 122 full-day respirable PM samples from 12 beauty salons (floor area ranging from 24 to 550 m3, staff from 4 to 8) in Almaty, Kazakhstan, taking 10 samples from each place using a portable SidePak AM520 monitor. We also assessed lifestyle (smoking, etc.), respiratory symptoms and health-related quality of life (HRQL) of the personnel using questionnaires. Out of 11,831 5-min data points, daily median respirable PM concentrations were highly variable and ranged from 0.013 to 0.666 mg/m3 with 8.5-times difference in the median concentrations between the venue with the highest median (0.29 mg/m3) and the least median (0.034 mg/m3). In a multivariate linear regression modelling, ambient PM2.5 concentration was the strongest predictor of daily median respirable PM concentration (beta 2.12; 95% CI 1.89; 2.39), and R2 of the model was 0.63. We also found a positive association of the median respirable PM with respiratory symptoms and seasonal allergy, but not with HRQL. Short-term respirable PM levels in the beauty salons may be very high, but the median concentrations are mainly determined by the ambient air pollution.

Exposure to respirable dust among workers fabricating aluminium trihydroxide-containing synthetic countertops.

The aim of this study is to characterize personal exposure of workers to respirable particulate matter (PM) generated in cutting and other fabrication activities when fabricating acryl polymer/aluminium trihydroxide synthetic countertops. We collected 29 personal full-day samples of respirable PM from three workers in a small private workshop. We tested differences between- and within-worker variances of mass concentrations using the Kruskall-Wallis test. We used segmented regression to test the means and medians 15-min interval concentrations changes over time and to identify a breakpoint. Respirable PM concentrations ranged nearly 100-fold, from 0.280 to 25.4 mg/m3 with a median of 2.0 mg/m3 (1-min concentrations from 13,920 data points). There were no statistical difference in daily median or geometric mean concentrations among workers, whereas the concentrations were significantly higher on days with three versus two workers present. The 15-min median concentrations (n = 974 measures) increased until 2.35 h (beta 0.177; p < 0.05), representing a 0.70 mg increase in exposure per hour. This was followed by a plateau in concentrations. The high levels of respirable PM we observed among workers fabricating aluminium trihydroxide-containing synthetic countertops highlight an unmet early prevention need.

Medico-social effectiveness of biological monitoring of iodine deficiency status (IDS) among women of reproductive age in Kazakhstan.

INTRODUCTION: Iodine deficiency is one of the most important public health problems in the world. It mostly affects pregnant women and children. The lack of iodine leads to an increase in the numbers of perinatal mortality and mental retardation. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In 2012-2014, a survey was carried out of 2,342 women, of whom 2284 were analyzed for salt to measure the content of iodine, and 2,242 women of reproductive age had their urine samples analyzed by the cerium-arsenite method based on the Sandell-Kolthoff reaction. Determination of the medical and social effectiveness of biological monitoring of IDS was carried out in 3 stages. RESULTS: The study revealed that in the eastern Kazakhstan region the relative risk (RR) of overall prevalence of iodine deficiency among women was 1.1 times higher (95% ID: 0.35-3.61; Z statistic = 0.192) among household respondents (≤15mkg/kg). In the Pavlodar region, the RR of the prevalence of total iodine deficiency is 0.5 times higher in households where the salt was not sufficiently iodized. In the Zhambyl region the RR of the iodine deficiency prevalence was about twice as high due to insufficient iodized salt. CONCLUSIONS: The introduction of biological monitoring of IDS among women, especially pregnant women, may positively affect the detection of the risk limits for the birth of infants with reduced mental abilities or other diseases during pregnancy, using timely targeted preventive measures to exclude factors that affect the spread of IDS.