Publications by authors named "Maria Hedmer"

Firefighters can be occupationally exposed to a wide range of airborne pollutants during fire-extinguishing operations. The overall study aim was to characterize occupational exposure to smoke for several groups of workers responding to fires, with specific aims to determine the correlations between exposure markers and to biologically assess their systemic exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in urine. Personal exposure measurements of equivalent black carbon (eBC), elemental carbon (EC), organic carbon (OC), nitrogen dioxide (NO), PAHs, lung deposited surface area (LDSA), and particle number concentration (PNC) of ultrafine particles were performed on firefighters, observers, and post-fire workers during firefighting exercises.

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Introduction: Antineoplastic drugs (ADs) are frequently used pharmaceuticals in the healthcare, and healthcare workers can be occupationally exposed to ADs. Monitoring of surface contamination is a common way to assess occupational exposure to ADs. The objective was to develop and validate a sensitive and quantitative monitoring method to determine surface contaminations of Pt as a marker for Pt-containing ADs.

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Article Synopsis
  • Controlled experiments were conducted to analyze the aerosol characteristics of fragmented MWCNT-enhanced concrete, which provided insights into the size, concentration, and behavior of these particulates when inhaled.
  • Results showed that while MWCNTs reduced air-borne particle emissions in light-weight porous concrete, they increased emissions in normal concrete, indicating complex interactions depending on concrete type and MWCNT concentration.
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Background: Welders are exposed to gas and particle emissions that can cause severe lung disease, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a leading cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. It is difficult to detect COPD early and therefore mitigating measures may be delayed. The aim of this study was to investigate lung health in welders and evaluate new sensitive methods with potential to assess early onset pulmonary changes in occupational settings.

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Article Synopsis
  • Metal waste recycling is increasing as part of the shift to a circular economy, but it releases harmful particulate matter into the air, posing risks to human health and the environment.
  • This study analyzed particle emissions and workplace exposures across three recycling streams: Waste of electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), metal scrap, and cables, using various measurement methods.
  • Results showed that WEEE recycling produced the highest particle concentrations, particularly nanoparticles containing toxic metals like Fe, Al, Zn, Pb, and Cu, raising concerns about their health and environmental effects that require further investigation.
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Introduction: Antineoplastic drugs (ADs) are commonly used pharmaceuticals for anticancer treatments. It has previously been shown that the external surface of drug vials frequently is contaminated with ADs. More than a decade ago methods to prevent occupational exposure were introduced by using plastic coverage of the glass vials or packing vials in a secondary plastic container.

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Objectives: The use of manufactured nanomaterials is increasing globally. Although multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are used in a wide range of applications, only limited data are available on emissions and exposures during CNT composite production. No exposure data using portable aethalometers in the personal breathing zone (PBZ) to monitor occupational exposure to CNTs have yet been published.

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Purpose: Underground diesel exhaust exposure is an occupational health risk. It is not known how recent intensified emission legislation and use of renewable fuels have reduced or altered occupational exposures. We characterized these effects on multipollutant personal exposure to diesel exhaust and underground ambient air concentrations in an underground iron ore mine.

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The main objective was to develop a wipe sampling test to measure surface contamination of the most frequently used antineoplastic drugs (ADs) in Swedish healthcare and, furthermore, to develop an analysis method sensitive enough to assess low levels of contamination. Two wipe sampling tests with separate sample processing methods assessing (i) cyclophosphamide (CP), ifosfamide (IF), 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), etoposide (ETO), gemcitabine (GEM) and cytarabine (CYT) (Wipe Test 1); and (ii) GEM, CYT and methotrexate (MTX) (Wipe Test 2), respectively, were developed by optimization of absorption and extraction efficiencies using different wipe tissue materials, tissue wetting solution, and extraction solvents. A fast liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method was developed for simultaneous detection of the studied ADs.

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Welders are exposed to high levels of metal particles, consisting mainly of iron and manganese (Mn) oxide. Metal particles, especially those containing Mn can be neurotoxic. In this exploratory study, we evaluated associations between welding and expression of 87 putative neurology-related proteins in serum in a longitudinal approach.

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Objective This study investigated whether low-to-moderate exposure to welding fumes is associated with adverse effects on the cardiovascular system. Methods To test this, we performed a longitudinal analysis of 78 mild steel welders and 96 controls; these subjects were examined twice, six years apart (ie, timepoints 1 and 2). All subjects (male and non-smoking at recruitment) completed questionnaires describing their health, work history, and lifestyle.

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Today, engineered nanomaterials are frequently used. Nanosized titanium dioxide (TiO) has been extensively used for many years and graphene is one type of emerging nanomaterial. Occupational airborne exposures to engineered nanomaterials are important to ensure safe workplaces and to extend the information needed for complete risk assessments.

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Background: Nanowires are a high-aspect-ratio material of increasing interest for a wide range of applications. A new and promising method to produce nanowires is by aerotaxy, where the wires are grown in a continuous stream of gas. The aerotaxy method can grow nanowires much faster than by more conventional methods.

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Welding fumes were recently classified as carcinogenic to humans and worldwide millions work as welders or perform welding operations. The purpose of this study was to identify new biomarkers of welding-induced carcinogenesis. We evaluated a panel of 91 putative cancer-related proteins in serum in a cohort of welders working with mild steel (n = 77) and controls (n = 94) from southern Sweden sampled on two occasions 6-year apart using a longitudinal analysis (linear mixed models).

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Risk assessments based on occupational exposure to chemicals have increased since REACH (European regulation on Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and restriction of Chemicals) came into force. The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) recommends that chemical exposure could be calculated using exposure models and that parameters used to calculate the exposure scenario (ES) should be communicated in extended safety data sheets (e-SDS) as workplace instructions which downstream users are obligated to follow. We aimed to evaluate REACH's risk assessment approach using the Stoffenmanager® 6.

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Objectives: Occupational exposure to diesel exhaust is common due the widespread use of diesel-powered combustion engines. Diesel exhaust is chemically complex and consists of thousands of compounds present as gases and particulate matter. Both nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and elemental carbon (EC) have been used as markers for diesel exhaust exposure.

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Background: Particle exposure is a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is a primary target for oxidative stress generated by particle exposure. We aimed to elucidate the effects of occupational exposure to particle-containing welding fumes on different biomarkers of mtDNA function, and in turn, explore if they modify the association between particle exposure and cardiovascular response, measured as blood pressure.

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Introduction: An increased production and use of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) is occurring worldwide. In parallel, a growing concern is emerging on the adverse effects the unintentional inhalation of CNTs can have on humans. There is currently a debate regarding which exposure metrics and measurement strategies are the most relevant to investigate workplace exposures to CNTs.

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Background: Welders are at risk for cardiovascular disease. Recent studies linked tobacco smoke exposure to hypomethylation of the F2RL3 (coagulation factor II (thrombin) receptor-like 3) gene, a marker for cardiovascular disease prognosis and mortality. However, whether welding fumes cause hypomethylation of F2RL3 remains unknown.

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Objectives: Occupational exposure to particulate air pollution has been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. However, the risk to welders working today remains unclear. We aimed to elucidate the cardiovascular effects of exposure to welding fumes.

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Background: The industrial use of novel-manufactured nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes and carbon nanodiscs is increasing globally. Occupational exposure can occur during production, downstream use, and disposal. The health effects of many nanomaterials are not yet fully characterized and to handle nano-objects, their aggregates and agglomerates >100nm (NOAA), a high degree of control measures and personal protective equipment are required.

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Evidence suggests that exposure to welding fumes is a risk factor for lung cancer. We examined relationships between low-to-moderate occupational exposure to particles from welding fumes and cancer-related biomarkers for oxidative stress, changes in telomere length, and alterations in DNA methylation. We enrolled 101 welders and 127 controls (all currently nonsmoking men) from southern Sweden.

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Background: The production and use of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) is rapidly growing. With increased production, there is potential that the number of occupational exposed workers will rapidly increase. Toxicological studies on rats have shown effects in the lungs, e.

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Lead in blood is a major concept in biomonitoring of exposure but investigations of its alternatives are scarce. The aim of the study was to describe different lead biomarkers' variances, day-to-day and between individuals, estimating their fraction of the total variance. Repeated sampling of whole blood, plasma and urine were conducted for 48 lead-exposed men and 20 individuals under normal environmental lead exposure, in total 603 measurements.

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