Abstract
Biomonitoring, the determination of chemical substances in human body fluids or tissues, is more and more frequently applied. At the same time detection limits are decreasing steadily. As a consequence, many data with potential relevance for public health are generated although they need not necessarily allow interpretation in term of health relevance. The European Centre of Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of Chemicals (ECETOC) formed a dedicated task force to build a framework for the interpretation of biomonitoring data. The framework that was developed evaluates biomonitoring data based on their analytical integrity, their ability to describe dose (toxicokinetics), their ability to relate to effects, and an overall evaluation and weight of evidence analysis. This framework was subsequently evaluated with a number of case studies and was shown to provide a rational basis to advance discussions on human biomonitoring allowing better use and application of this type of data in human health risk assessment.
Highlights
Biomonitoring, the measurement of the concentrations of chemical substances in human body fluids and tissues, has been routinely applied in industry and parts of the public health arena for more than 50 years [1]
As a consequence, biomonitoring is more and more frequently applied in various health settings. This leads primarily to an increase in the available knowledge on the extent of human exposure to chemical substances. It may create a number of opportunities for improving human health risk assessment because it triggers new research investigating the links between low-level exposures, adverse health effects, and potentially vulnerable population groups
The full report can be downloaded from the ECETOC website at http://www.ecetoc.org
Summary
Biomonitoring, the measurement of the concentrations of chemical substances in human body fluids and tissues, has been routinely applied in industry and parts of the public health arena for more than 50 years [1]. Understand how different forms of biomonitoring data should be evaluated and applied, (3) development of guidance on how study findings should be communicated to different interest groups; this guidance would need to cover the communication of results to individuals and groups, as well as including the wider communication of findings to external audiences, and (4) clarification on the rules and considerations that govern the ethics of how biomonitoring surveys and programmes are initiated, managed and maintained; rules which could provide a basis for such guidance exist, but the extent to which biomonitoring surveys, those undertaken in the public health setting, address these issues is currently inconsistent and the development of clear and concise ethically-based guidance in this area would help minimise this. The full report can be downloaded from the ECETOC website at http://www.ecetoc.org
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