Mortality from asbestos-associated disease in Libby, Montana 1979-2011.

Research on asbestos exposure in Libby, MT, has focused on occupational exposure in vermiculite mining and processing, but less attention has been paid to asbestos-related mortality among community members without vermiculite mining occupational history. Our study reports on asbestos-related mortality in Libby over 33 years (1979-2011) while controlling for occupational exposure. We calculated sex-specific 33-year standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) for Libby residents who died from 1979 to 2011 with an asbestos-related cause of death.

Serum PCB concentrations in residents of Calcasieu and Lafayette Parishes, Louisiana with comparison to the U.S. population.

In 2002, a cross-sectional study designed to compare the serum dioxin toxic equivalent concentrations (TEQ) of a population-based sample of Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana residents, to Lafayette Parish was conducted. The mono-ortho polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were measured in order to calculate the TEQ. We compared the sum of lipid adjusted serum concentrations of 27 PCB congeners (total PCBs) in residents of these two parishes and also by their demographic characteristics.

Comparison of blood volatile organic compound levels in residents of Calcasieu and Lafayette Parishes, LA, with US reference ranges.

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry conducted a study to evaluate body burden levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) among residents of highly industrialized Calcasieu Parish, LA, USA, in 2002. Blood VOC levels in a representative sample of participants in Calcasieu Parish were compared with a similar group of participants in the less-industrialized Lafayette Parish. Participants' ages ranged from 15 to 91 years, 46% were men, and 89% were Caucasian.

Communities near toluene diisocyanate sources: an investigation of exposure and health.

Toluene diisocyanate (TDI) is a well-known cause of occupational asthma, but we know little about the potential for exposure and health effects among residents who live near facilities that release TDI. In the mid-1990's, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry investigated exposures to TDI and health outcomes in one community, which left some unanswered questions. This cross-sectional study evaluated the potential associations between living near a TDI source and the prevalence of three variables: asthma or asthma-like respiratory symptoms, antibodies specific to TDI, and verifiable levels of TDI in residential air.

A multidisciplinary investigation of a polycythemia vera cancer cluster of unknown origin.

Cancer cluster investigations rarely receive significant public health resource allocations due to numerous inherent challenges and the limited success of past efforts. In 2008, a cluster of polycythemia vera, a rare blood cancer with unknown etiology, was identified in northeast Pennsylvania. A multidisciplinary group of federal and state agencies, academic institutions, and local healthcare providers subsequently developed a multifaceted research portfolio designed to better understand the cause of the cluster.

A review of events that expose children to elemental mercury in the United States.

Concern for children exposed to elemental mercury prompted the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to review the sources of elemental mercury exposures in children, describe the location and proportion of children affected, and make recommendations on how to prevent these exposures. In this review, we excluded mercury exposures from coal-burning facilities, dental amalgams, fish consumption, medical waste incinerators, or thimerosal-containing vaccines. We reviewed federal, state, and regional programs with data on mercury releases along with published reports of children exposed to elemental mercury in the United States.

A review of events that expose children to elemental mercury in the United States.

Objective: Concern for children exposed to elemental mercury prompted the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to review the sources of elemental mercury exposures in children, describe the location and proportion of children affected, and make recommendations on how to prevent these exposures. In this review, we excluded mercury exposures from coal-burning facilities, dental amalgams, fish consumption, medical waste incinerators, or thimerosal-containing vaccines.

Data Sources: We reviewed federal, state, and regional programs with information on mercury releases along with published reports of children exposed to elemental mercury in the United States.

Health effects of hazardous waste.

Since 1995, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) has evaluated environmental contaminants and human health risks at nearly 3000 sites. Hazardous substances at these sites include newly emerging problems as well as historically identified threats. ATSDR classifies sites according to the degree of hazard they represent to the public.

Exposure pathway evaluations for sites that processed asbestos-contaminated vermiculite.

The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is currently evaluating the potential public health impacts associated with the processing of asbestos-contaminated vermiculite at various facilities around the country. Vermiculite ore contaminated with significant levels of asbestos was mined and milled in Libby, Montana, from the early 1920s until 1990. The majority of the Libby ore was then shipped to processing facilities for exfoliation.