Inflammatory and coagulatory markers and exposure to different size fractions of particle mass, number and surface area air concentrations in the Swedish hard metal industry, in particular to cobalt

• Published in: Biomarkers Vol. 26; no. 6; pp. 557 - 569
• Main Authors: Andersson, Lena, Hedbrant, Alexander, Persson, Alexander, Bryngelsson, Ing-Liss, Sjögren, Bengt, Stockfelt, Leo, Särndahl, Eva, Westberg, Håkan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Taylor & Francis 2021
• Subjects: Air Pollutants, Occupational - analysis; Alloys - analysis; area; Biomarkers - blood; Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology; Blood Coagulation; Chemical Industry; Clinical Medicine; Cobalt; Cobalt - analysis; Cobalt - chemistry; coronary-heart-disease; fibrinogen; Hard metal industry; health; hemostatic factors; Humans; Inflammation - blood; Inflammatory markers; Klinisk medicin; lung-cancer mortality; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Occupational Exposure - analysis; occupational-exposure; Particle mass; Particle number; Particle Size; particle surface; Particle surface area; peripheral-blood; risk; secretory protein cc16; Surface Properties; Sweden; Toxicology; Tungsten - analysis; wood-smoke; Sweden; particle mass; Inflammatory markers; cobalt; particle number; hard metal industry; particle surface area
• ISSN: 1354-750X; 1366-5804; 1366-5804
• DOI: 10.1080/1354750X.2021.1941260

To study the relationship between inhalation of airborne particles and cobalt in the Swedish hard metal industry and markers of inflammation and coagulation in blood. Personal sampling of inhalable cobalt and dust were performed for subjects in two Swedish hard metal plants. Stationary measurements were used to study concentrations of inhalable, respirable, and total dust and cobalt, PM 10 and PM 2.5 , the particle surface area and the particle number concentrations. The inflammatory markers CC16, TNF, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, SAA and CRP, and the coagulatory markers FVIII, vWF, fibrinogen, PAI-1 and D-dimer were measured. A complete sampling was performed on the second or third day of a working week following a work-free weekend, and additional sampling was taken on the fourth or fifth day. The mixed model analysis was used, including covariates. The average air concentrations of inhalable dust and cobalt were 0.11 mg/m 3 and 0.003 mg/m 3 , respectively. For some mass-based exposure measures of cobalt and total dust, statistically significant increased levels of FVIII, vWF and CC16 were found. The observed relationships between particle exposure and coagulatory biomarkers may indicate an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.