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| NIOSH Home > Safety and Health Topics >Skin Exposures and Effects >Occupational & Environmental Exposures of Skin to Chemicals- 2005> Abstracts |
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Critical review of experimental investigations of dermal absorption of chemical contaminants from soil and sediment
E.W. Spalt1, J.C. Kissel*1, J.H. Shirai1, A.L. Bunge2 Risk Assessment of U.S. hazardous wastes sites subject to cleanup under provisions of Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) often requires characterization of the dermal availability of chemical contaminants in soil and/or sediment. Current EPA guidance for assessment of dermal exposures to contaminants in water and soil was issued in 2001 as a supplement (Part E) to the Risk Assessment Guidance for Superfund (RAGS). The soil protocol presented in RAGS Part E is dependent in part upon results from the relatively few empirical investigations of dermal absorption of soil and sediment-borne contaminants that have been conducted to date. A mix of in vitro and in vivo experiments using both human and surrogate skin has been reported. A review of that literature was conducted with attention to relevant criteria including adequacy of disclosure of experimental details, consideration of layering effects, appropriateness of particle size distribution selected, avoidance of chemical saturation of soil, soil-agent contact time, continuity of dermal contact (in in vivo studies), and potential flux limitation (in in vitro studies). Most studies published to date are deficient by virtue of execution or reporting on one or more of the selected criteria. Since additional experimental work is needed, agreement on acceptable approaches would be useful. This work was supported by U.S. EPA via cooperative agreement R-82963201. Material presented here has not been reviewed by EPA and no Agency endorsement should be inferred. ES was also partially supported via CDC/NIOSH Training Grant T42/CCT010418-11.
Content last modified: 18 May 2005 |
