Type de document
Études primaires
Année de publication
2021
Langue
Anglais
Titre de la revue
International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health
Première page
1877
Dernière page
1888
Résumé
Objective
Occupational exposure to antineoplastic drugs (ANPs) occurs mainly through dermal contact. Our study was set up to assess the potential exposure of hospital sanitation (HS) personnel, for whom almost no data are available, through contamination of surfaces they regularly touch.
Methods
In the oncology departments of two hospitals around Montreal, surface wipe samples of 120–2000 cm2 were taken at 10 sites cleaned by the HS personnel and five other sites frequently touched by nursing and pharmacy personnel. A few hand wipe samples were collected to explore skin contamination. Wipes were analyzed by ultra-performance liquid chromatography tandem–mass spectrometry for 10 ANPs.
Results
Overall, 60.9% of 212 surface samples presented at least one ANP above the limits of detection (LOD). Cyclophosphamide and gemcitabine were most often detected (52% and 31% of samples respectively), followed by 5–fluorouracil and irinotecan (15% each). Highest concentrations of five ANPs were found in outpatient clinics on toilet floors (5–fluorouracil, 49 ng/cm2; irinotecan, 3.6 ng/cm2), a perfusion pump (cyclophosphamide, 19.6 ng/cm2) and on a cytotoxic waste bin cover (gemcitabine, 4.97 ng/cm2). Floors in patient rooms had highest levels of cytarabine (0.12 ng/cm2) and methotrexate (6.38 ng/cm2). Hand wipes were positive for two of 12 samples taken on HS personnel, seven of 18 samples on nurses, and two of 14 samples on pharmacy personnel.
Conclusions
A notable proportion of surfaces showed measurable levels of ANPs, with highest concentrations found on surfaces cleaned by HS personnel, who would benefit from appropriate preventive training. As potential sources of worker exposure, several hospital surfaces need to be regularly monitored to evaluate environmental contamination and efficacy of cleaning.
Mots-clés
Antinéoplasique, Antineoplastic, Évaluation de l'exposition, Exposure evaluation, Personnel de soutien, Employee, Service de santé, Health service, Échantillonnage par frottis de surface, Wipe sampling, Nettoyage des lieux de travail, Cleaning of workplaces
Numéro de projet IRSST
2014-0001
Citation recommandée
Labrèche, F., Ouellet, C., Roberge, B., Caron, N. J., Yennek, A. et Bussières, J.-F. (2021). Occupational exposure to antineoplastic drugs: What about hospital sanitation personnel? International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 94(8), 1877-1888. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-021-01731-w
Included in
Environmental Health Commons, Occupational Health and Industrial Hygiene Commons, Toxicology Commons