Health risk assessment of volatile organic compounds exposure among nail salon workers in Vietnam

Abstract

Purpose The objective of this study is to assess the carcinogen and non-carcinogen risks due to exposure to volatile organic compounds including methyl methacrylate (MMA), benzene, toluene, and xylene among Vietnamese nail salon workers, using probabilistic health risk assessment. Methods This study applied the probabilistic health risk assessment framework to assess the health risk due to exposure to four types of volatile organic compounds among nail salon workers. Forty-two passive personal samples of full-shift female nail workers from 15 salons in Da Nang city were monitored and analyzed by GC-FID in the Thammasat laboratory. Exposure parameters were collected by interviewing nail salon workers. Monte Carlo simulation was used to characterize the risk and its uncertainty. Results The mean of concentrations of MMA, benzene, toluene, and xylene were 20.62, 0.21, 2.49, and 0.58 mg m−3, respectively. The 95th percentile hazard quotients calculated for MMA, benzene, toluene, and xylene were 33.14, 7.49, 0.54, and 2.07, respectively. The 95th percentile lifetime cancer risk for benzene was 198 times higher than the EPA recommendation for cancer risk (10−6). Conclusions Non-cancer risks from exposure to MMA, benzene, and xylene were many times higher than the acceptable limit, which indicated a possible risk of adverse health effects among nail salon workers. Nail salon workers may also be at risk of leukemia or cancer of the blood-forming organs because the cancer risk due to exposure to benzene is higher than the recommended level.