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American Journal of Public Health logoLink to American Journal of Public Health
. 1990 Aug;80(8):921–925. doi: 10.2105/ajph.80.8.921

Environmental and biological monitoring for lead exposure in California workplaces.

L Rudolph 1, D S Sharp 1, S Samuels 1, C Perkins 1, J Rosenberg 1
PMCID: PMC1404773  PMID: 2368850

Abstract

Patterns of environmental and biological monitoring for lead exposure were surveyed in lead-using industries in California. Employer self-reporting indicates a large proportion of potentially lead-exposed workers have never participated in a monitoring program. Only 2.6 percent of facilities have done environmental monitoring for lead, and only 1.4 percent have routine biological monitoring programs. Monitoring practices vary by size of facility, with higher proportions in industries in which larger facilities predominate. Almost 80 percent of battery manufacturing employees work in job classifications which have been monitored, versus only 1 percent of radiator-repair workers. These findings suggest that laboratory-based surveillance for occupational lead poisoning may seriously underestimate the true number of lead poisoned workers and raise serious questions regarding compliance with key elements of the OSHA Lead Standard.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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