Adverse Birth Outcomes and Maternal Exposure to Trichloroethylene and Tetrachloroethylene through Soil Vapor Intrusion in New York State

Background: Industrial spills of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in Endicott, New York (USA), have led to contamination of groundwater, soil, and soil gas. Previous studies have reported an increase in adverse birth outcomes among women exposed to VOCs in drinking water

Leukaemia incidence among workers in the shoe and boot manufacturing industry: a case-control study

BACKGROUND: Previous reports have indicated an excess of leukaemia in Broome County, New York, particularly in the Town of Union. Surveillance of cancer incidence data indicates that a large proportion of these cases occurred among males ages 65 and older. Shoe and boot manufacturing has been the largest single industry in this area throughout much of the past century. Occupational studies from Europe suggest a link between leukaemia and employment in the shoe and boot manufacturing industry. However, researchers have not found a positive association between leukaemia and employment in the shoe industry among workers in the United States. METHODS: A matched case-control study was conducted to investigate the association between leukaemia incidence among males 65 and older and employment in the shoe and boot manufacturing industry. Thirty-six cases of leukaemia occurring between 1981–1990; among males age 65 and older; residing in the town of Union met the study case criteria. Death certificates were obtained for each of the cases. These were matched to death certificates of 144 controls on date of death and date of birth +/- 1 year. Death certificates were then examined to determine the employer and occupation of each study subject. Conditional logistic regression was used to determine the risk of leukaemia among those working in the industry. RESULTS: The risk of both leukaemia (OR = 1.47; 95% CI 0.70, 3.09) and acute myeloid leukaemia (OR = 1.19; 95% CI 0.33, 4.28) were elevated among those employed in the shoe and boot manufacturing industry, however neither was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: The results, though suggestive of an association between leukaemia and employment in the shoe and boot manufacturing industry, were not statistically conclusive due mainly to limited study power. Several additional limitations may also have prevented the observance of more conclusive findings. Better exposure assessment, information on length of exposure and types of job held, control of confounding factors and information on chemicals used by this company would strengthen any future investigation

Biomonitoring result of PFAS exposure from Gabreski Air National Firefighting foam among residents in Westhampton, NY

Background: Perfluorooctanoic sulfonic acid (PFOS) and other per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are considered emerging contaminants. The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) conducted a PFAS biomonitoring program for a sample of the population served by the public water supply in the Westhampton, NY area (n = 161). The objective of this study was to assess PFAS exposure levels in the study area and identify potential risk factors associated with PFAS concentrations. Methods: Descriptive analyses were conducted to present both demographic and exposure characteristics. Mann-Whitney U Tests were conducted to compare the differences of four PFAS concentrations, PFOS, PFOA, PFHxS and PFNA, respectively, between the study group and the general population age 12 years and above (NHANES 2017–2018). Multiple linear regressions were conducted to examine PFAS concentration levels in relation to demographic and exposure characteristics. A sub-analysis was conducted for the female only study group to examine the associations between PFAS, risk factors and reproductive factors. Results: The concentrations of PFAS levels in the Westhampton study group were in general higher than the 2017–2018 U.S population. A positive association was found between age, sex, length of residency (LOR) in the study area and local fish consumption and PFAS serum levels. The final model for PFOS concentrations among females in this study shows that the number of pregnancies was inversely associated with PFOS serum levels. These findings are consistent with other biomonitoring studies. Conclusion: The PFAS serum levels among study population were slightly elevated compared to the general U.S. population, suggesting a possible relation to public drinking water exposure but not indicative of long-term, high-level exposure to PFAS in the area. For a more thorough biomonitoring surveillance, systematic monitoring with more comprehensive questionnaire should be developed for emerging contaminants such as PFAS