Abstract
BackgroundExposure assessment has shifted from pollutant monitoring in air, soil, and water toward personal exposure measurements and biomonitoring. This trend along with the paucity of health effect data for many of the pollutants studied raise ethical and scientific challenges for reporting results to study participants.MethodsWe interviewed 26 individuals involved in biomonitoring studies, including academic scientists, scientists from environmental advocacy organizations, IRB officials, and study participants; observed meetings where stakeholders discussed these issues; and reviewed the relevant literature to assess emerging ethical, scientific, and policy debates about personal exposure assessment and biomonitoring, including public demand for information on the human health effects of chemical body burdens.ResultsWe identify three frameworks for report-back in personal exposure studies: clinical ethics; community-based participatory research; and citizen science 'data judo.' The first approach emphasizes reporting results only when the health significance of exposures is known, while the latter two represent new communication strategies where study participants play a role in interpreting, disseminating, and leveraging results to promote community health. We identify five critical areas to consider in planning future biomonitoring studies.ConclusionPublic deliberation about communication in personal exposure assessment research suggests that new forms of community-based research ethics and participatory scientific practice are emerging.
Highlights
Exposure assessment has shifted from pollutant monitoring in air, soil, and water toward personal exposure measurements and biomonitoring
We focus on exposure biomonitoring throughout, parallel issues are raised by other personal exposure assessment methods, such as dust and air samples taken from an individual's home
Our results identify three approaches used by academic scientists and environmental organizations to communicate information about the effects of chemical exposures on health and to leverage regulatory and policy change: 1) clinical ethics; 2) community-based participatory research; and 3) citizen science 'data judo.' The first is biomedically driven, while the latter two emphasize prevention research and advocacy
Summary
Exposure assessment has shifted from pollutant monitoring in air, soil, and water toward personal exposure measurements and biomonitoring. This trend along with the paucity of health effect data for many of the pollutants studied raise ethical and scientific challenges for reporting results to study participants. Dotson's demand to document 'chemical trespass' [2] in her body reveals the scientific promise as well as policy and ethical challenges of the rapidly expanding field of chemical biomonitoring. Population-based biomonitoring of blood lead levels in children was adopted to track the effectiveness of poisoning prevention strategies and to detect cases where exposures from homes contaminated with lead paint need to be remediated [8]
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