Review on technologies and their applicability in an exposome-based assessment of hazards and risk in the petrochemical industry

摘要

Oil & gas workers have been shown to be at increased risk of various types of diseases including several types of cancers, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and hearing loss. Exposome technologies for assessing the external (e.g. sensors, use of smart phone apps and online platforms, big data) and internal exposome (e.g. omics, pharmacokinetic modelling, biomarker technologies) offer new possibilities for effective prevention of these diseases. The objective of this study was to review the literature on these technologies and evaluate their applicability in an exposome-based assessment of hazards and risk related to the petrochemical industry. Both peer reviewed literature and grey literature focused on the petrochemical industry and the most frequently-occurring stressors (including particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, and noise) were identified by searches in Medline, Web of Science, and Google Scholar, for 1) identifying current occupational challenges, 2) identifying current exposome-based methods used, and 3) recommend on exposome-based methods to be used in future exposome studies on the petrochemical industry, which can help to overcome current challenges. Based on preliminary results, current challenges in the petrochemical industry include limited information about exposure at the workplaces, working history and life styles to establish causal relationships between exposure and disease. In addition, knowledge on hazards improved, which has led to a (further) reduction of exposure limits for many stressors (e.g. benzene, noise), requiring new exposure assessment methods capable of meeting the new detection limited. Finally, there is a need for more personal risk assessment as individual susceptibility to multiple stressors is becoming increasingly important. Currently, exposome-based methods are still largely missing in the petrochemical industry. This presentation will provide an overview on promising technical applications (including chemical sensors, context sensors, smart devices, biomarkers, omics, adverse outcome pathways and non-invasive monitoring) used in other occupational settings, recommended to overcome the identified current challenges.