Health Risk Assessment Method Research Articles

Trace Metals Pollution and Health Risks for Planning Area Soils of 193 Chinese Cities

Urban soils are more easily subjected to modification, especially by contamination because of various human activities, and the environmental problems caused by urban soil pollution have become more prominent. To systematically investigate concentration characteristics, pollution levels, and exposure risks of 13 trace metals in urban soils of planning areas for 193 cities above the prefectural level, located in 31 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) of China, levels of pollution in urban soil were evaluated using the geoaccumulation index and integrated pollution index of trace metals, and health risks of residents exposed to urban soils were quantified using the health risk assessment method recommended by the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). The results show that the median concentrations of As, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Se, Tl, V, and Zn in topsoils of urban planning areas were 9.25, 2.14, 0.174, 12.4, 68.4, 28.2, 0.095, 27.7, 31.1, 0.29, 0.61, 82.7, and 82.2 mg·kg-1, respectively. Compared with the corresponding urban soil background values, the concentrations of Cd, Hg, and Se changed significantly. The geoaccumulation index (Igeo) values showed that Hg in urban soils of the planning area was the most severe pollutant, followed by Se and Cd, which caused pollution levels of uncontaminated to moderately contaminated levels, while other trace metals were uncontaminated. The Nemerow IPI (IPIN) revealed that the soils in 22 urban planning areas were heavily polluted and 16 urban planning areas were moderately polluted; in addition, the most polluted city in China was Zhuzhou in the Hunan province. The results of health risk assessment indicate that the soils in the five urban planning areas-Chenzhou City, Huangshi City, Zhuzhou City, Xiangtan City, and Longyan City-posed potential non-carcinogenic risks to children, and the major factor triggering risks was ingestion of Pb. To understand the soil pollution status and distribution of contaminated land parcel, it is suggested to carry out detailed investigation in cities with integrated moderate to heavy pollution to establish the list of contaminated land parcel and implement pollution control and restoration.

Human Health Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Onion Bulbs Cultivated in Katsina State, North West Nigeria

Vegetable fields in Katsina State are increasingly being loaded with heavy metals through various pollution sources such as agricultural activities mining and traffic. Onion bulb samples from the three senatorial zones that constitute to make up Katsina state in the North West of Nigeria were collected and the concentrations of seven heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cr, Fe, Zn, Mn and Ni) in all the samples were determined by atomic absorption spectrometry. The health risk assessment methods developed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) were employed to explore the potential health hazards of heavy metals in the samples on the children and adult population. The highest mean concentration (mg/kg) was observed for Fe, followed by Pb, Zn and Mn. While Cd has the lowest concentration with the heavy metals Cr and Ni being below detection level (BDL). Overall hazard index (Hi) for the heavy metals were within the safety limit. The overall cancer risk to the adults based on pseudo-total metal concentrations exceeded the target value, mainly contributed by Pb. Mn and Zn were the primary heavy metals posing non-cancer risks while Pb caused the greatest cancer risk. It was concluded that consumption of the onion samples from Katsina State may contribute to the population cancer burden.

Two distinct mechanisms of fluoride enrichment and associated health risk in springs' water near an inactive volcano, southeast Iran.

Groundwater fluoride contamination is a major issue of water pollution in the world with health hazards such as dental and skeletal fluorosis. This research focused on exposure to the high concentration of fluoride in the springs water in the Bazman volcanic area, southeast Iran. The combination of chemical/isotopic analysis, geochemical modeling, health risk assessment and multivariate statistical methods were applied to investigate the contamination and sources of fluoride in the samples. Groundwater samples were collected from cold and thermal springs. Major ions, fluoride, trace elements and stable isotopes δ18O and δD were measured in the samples using standard methods, ICP-MS and OA-ICOS, respectively. Fluoride content in springs varied from 0.5 to 3.75mg/L with an average value of 1.66mg/L. The highest fluoride concentrations were observed in the eastern cold springs while thermal springs showed the minimum fluoride contents. The majority of samples showed F contents higher than the calculated optimal concentration of fluoride (0.75mg/L). Reaction of fluorite mineral with HCO3 and replacement of F in clay minerals and metal oxy-hydroxides with OH- in water were likely cause fluoride enrichment in the eastern springs. Whereas, in the western springs and thermal springs, origin of fluoride was related to weathering of muscovite, cryolite, apatite and fluoroapatite minerals. The δ18O and δ2H of the water samples displayed the impact on evaporation on fluoride enrichment in all spring water samples. The average value of contamination index (Cd) in the water samples was 1.94 categorizing medium risk level while springs S7, S8, S9 and S4 were above the threshold value of Cd index. The fluoride hazard quotient (HQ) showed that 25%, 44%, 56% and 0% of springs' water resources had high risk level for age group of adults, teenager, children and infants, respectively. Therefore, health risk of fluoride in drinking water resources were in the following order: children>teenager>adults>infants.

Overview of statistical methods for estimating the relative risk of delayed respiratory effect related to ambient air pollution exposure.

The occurrence of smog episodes and their significant impact on human health have forced research focused on risk assessment. Over the years, methods of exposure measuring have been improved, as well as statistical models necessary to the biological response estimation including the risk of incidence or death. The aim of presented study is to review and evaluate possibilities of statistical methods of delayed respiratory health effects risk assessment related to ambient air pollution exposure. The review of published data was carried using the PubMed platform from 1994 to the 2020 year. Over 80 references were include in the analysis identifying general characteristics, construction of models estimating the relative risk of respiratory incidents with delayed health effect, and modelling tools available in statistical packages R, SAS, and Statistica. Among various methods of health risk assessment, the Almon model, the Poisson model, and the Distributed Lag Non-Linear Models (DLNM) were most common used. Initially, the Poisson model was used, close to 60% of the cited works apply this method. The interest in the nonlinear modelling implementation has increased (34% of cited papers) in recent years. Mostly researchers used R or SAS statistical software. Usually, was calculated the relative risk of health effect related to short-term exposure (up to a week). About 75% of available papers concern measurements of relative risk in response to the concentration of pollution increase by unit=10 μg/m3. Other describe the risk associated with the exposure increasing by the interquartile range (IQR). Distributed Lag Non-linear Model DLNM is classified as the statistical tool recommended by researchers due to its flexibility in defining, simplicity in interpretation, and increasingly frequent applications to environmental epidemiology.

Heavy Metal Pollution Characteristics and Ecological and Health Risk Assessment of Atmospheric PM2.5 in a Living Area of Zhengzhou City

To study the pollution characteristics of atmospheric heavy metal elements in a living area of Zhengzhou City, assess the potential ecological risks, and determine risks to resident health in this city, the Wuhan Tianhong TH-16A Airborne Particles Intelligent Sampler was used to collect atmospheric PM2.5 in Zhengzhou City. The mass concentrations of 17 metal elements were analyzed by ambient air determination of inorganic elements by ambient particle matter wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry. The source of heavy metals was analyzed by the enrichment factor method and principal component analysis. The ecological risk index method and the US Environmental Protection Agency's health risk assessment method were used to evaluate the potential ecological risks and residents' health risks from Cr, Cd, Cu, Zn, Ni, Pb, As, and other elements. The results showed that metals with higher enrichment factor values were Cd, Sb, Pb, and As, and Cd had the highest enrichment factor value. The sources of metal elements in a living area of Zhengzhou City were mainly crust/burning coal, fuel, garbage burning, metallurgical dust, and vehicle emission. The single factor potential ecological hazard index values of Cd, Pb, Zn, As, Cu, Ni, and Cr were 70420.2, 255.3, 204.6, 71.5, 36.9, 24.0, and 5.1, respectively. Cd, As, and Cr in a living area of Zhengzhou City posed a cancer risk, and Cd was the most harmful. Mn had a non-carcinogenic risk.

Can Complexity-Thinking Methods Contribute to Improving Occupational Safety in Industry 4.0? A Review of Safety Analysis Methods and Their Concepts

With the introduction of Industry 4.0, occupational health and safety finds itself confronted with new types of hazards. Many Industry 4.0 innovations involve increased machine intelligence. These properties make socio-technical work in Industry 4.0 applications inherently more complex. At the same time, system failure can become more opaque to its users. This paper reviews and assesses safety analysis methods as the breakdown of interaction coupling in socio-technical systems on the one hand, and the degree of failure tractability on the other hand; the latter being used as a proxy for complexity. Previous literature confirms that traditional health and safety risk assessment methods are unable or are ‘ill-equipped’ to deal with these system properties. This paper studies the need to introduce new paradigms and safety methods related to complexity thinking with theories borrowed from the study of complex adaptive systems, all to assess the arena of abruptly changing hazards introduced by Industry 4.0. At the same time, this review makes clear that there is no one-solution-fits-all method. Occupational health and safety (OHS) covers many different hazard types and will need a combination of old, new and yet-to-be-developed safety assessment methods.

Estimation of some trace metal pollutants in River Atuwara southwestern Nigeria and spatio-temporal human health risks assessment

Over twenty thousand persons rely on water from Atuwara River for drinking and other domestic purposes, hence the need to ascertain the human health risk inherent in such practice. Seventy-two water samples were collected from River Atuwara during the dry and wet seasons of 2018, and the concentration of heavy metals (Pb, As, Ni, Cr, Zn, Cu, and Cd) were measured using ICP-OES. A newly developed human health risk assessment method, HHRISK code was used to estimate the health risks associated with consumption of water from Atuwara River. Results obtained revealed that the concentration of heavy metals in the river was as follows: Cd < Ni < Pb < Cr < Cu < As < Zn in the wet season and Cd < Pb < Ni < Cu < Cr < As < Zn during the dry season. Principal component analysis suggested that industrial effluents, agricultural activities and base-rock interaction are responsible for pollution of Atuwara River. The cumulative hazard index (HIcum) obtained was 678.0 ± 36.8 (for adult) and 1392.0 ± 132 (for child) for non-carcinogenic risks. A cumulative carcinogenic risk (CRcum) of 1.01E–1±5.26E–3 and 4.96E–2±5.05E–3 was obtained for adult and children respectively, suggesting that up to 1 in 10 adults and 1 in 20 children may suffer from cancer over their lifetime as a result of consumption and exposure to water from River Atuwara. These results highlight the fact that unavailability of safe drinking water in many parts of the world remains a real and persistent risk which must be tackled.

Ambient volatile organic compounds in a suburban site between Beijing and Tianjin: Concentration levels, source apportionment and health risk assessment

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have vital implications for secondary pollutants, atmospheric oxidation and human health. Ambient VOCs were investigated using an online system, gas chromatography–mass spectrometry/flame ionization detector (GC–MS/FID), at a suburban site in Xianghe in the North China Plain from 6 November 2017 to 29 January 2018. Positive matrix factorization (PMF) receptor model was applied to identify the major VOC contributing sources. Four-step health risk assessment method was used to estimate risks of all risk-posing VOC species. A total of 101 VOCs were quantified, and the mean concentration of total VOCs was 61.04 ± 65.18 ppbv. The VOCs were dominated by alkanes (38.76%), followed by alkenes, aromatics, halocarbons, OVOCs, acetylene and acetonitrile. The results of PMF revealed that vehicle exhaust, industrial emissions, liquefied petroleum gas & natural gas, solvent utilization and secondary and long-lived species contributed 31.0%, 26.4%, 18.6%, 13.6% and 10.4%, respectively, to the total VOCs. Pollutant-specific and source-specific noncarcinogenic and carcinogenic risk estimates were conducted, which showed that acrolein and vehicle exhaust had evident noncarcinogenic risks of 4.9 and 0.9, respectively. The carcinogenic risks of specific species (1,3-butadiene, acetaldehyde, benzene, chloroform and 1,2-dichloroethane) and identified sources were above the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) acceptable level (1.0 × 10−6) but below the tolerable risk level (1.0 × 10−4). Vehicle exhaust was the largest contributor (56.2%) to noncarcinogenic risk, but solvent utilization (32.6%) to carcinogenic risk. Moreover, with the evolution of pollution levels, almost all VOC species, contributions of alkenes, aromatics, solvent utilization and vehicle exhaust, and pollutant-specific and source-specific risks increased continuously and noticeably. Collectively, our findings unraveled the importance of alkenes, aromatics, solvent utilization and vehicle exhaust in the evolution of pollution levels. Future studies should consider targeting these VOC groups and sources when focusing on effective reduction strategies and assessing public health risks.

BTEX compositions and its potential health impacts in Malaysia

This study aims to determine the composition of BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene) and assess the risk to health at different sites in Malaysia. Continuous monitoring of BTEX in Kuala Lumpur City Centre, Kuala Terengganu, Kota Kinabalu and Fraser Hill were conducted using Online Gas Chromatograph. For comparison, BTEX at selected hotspot locations were determined by active sampling method using sorbent tubes and Thermal Desorption Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry. The hazard quotient (HQ) for non-carcinogenic and the life-time cancer risk (LTCR) of BTEX were calculated using the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) health risk assessment (HRA) methods. The results showed that the highest total BTEX concentrations using continuous monitoring were recorded in the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (49.56 ± 23.71 μg/m3). Toluene was the most dominant among the BTEX compounds. The average concentrations of benzene ranged from 0.69 ± 0.45 μg/m3 to 6.20 ± 3.51 μg/m3. Measurements using active sampling showed that BTEX concentrations dominated at the roadside (193.11 ± 114.57 μg/m3) in comparison to petrol station (73.08 ± 30.41 μg/m3), petrochemical industry (32.10 ± 13.13 μg/m3) and airport (25.30 ± 6.17 μg/m3). Strong correlations among BTEX compounds (p<0.01, r>0.7) at Kuala Lumpur City Centre showed that BTEX compounds originated from similar sources. The values of HQ at all stations were <1 indicating the non-carcinogenic risk are negligible and do not pose threats to human health. The LTCR value based on benzene inhalation (1.59 × 10−5) at Kuala Lumpur City Centre were between 1 × 10−4 and 1 × 10−5, representing a probable carcinogenic risk.

Health risk assessment for occupants as a decision-making tool to quantify the environmental effects of particulate matter in construction projects

With the seriousness of the environmental impact of air pollutants, it is necessary to predict the PM10 emissions and quantify its health risks in construction projects to prevent conflicts with occupants. Therefore, this study aimed to propose a method for assessing the health risks of PM10 for occupants in the area near the construction sites as a decision-making tool. Toward this end, PM10 concentration and health risks for the occupants near the construction site were estimated. The results of the case study show that there is a difference in PM10 concentration among areas in the different distances (i.e., 31.5 times at maximum) and directions (i.e., 4.2 times at maximum) from the construction site due to wind direction and terrain obstacles. Personal health risk of PM10 for occupants was higher in the school by 35.3% than in the apartment complex due to their higher proportion of population exposed to PM10 during the construction. Meanwhile, total population group health risk was higher for the apartment complex than the school by 63.2% due to their more population. The proposed method for health risk assessment of PM10 for occupants could be helpful as a decision-making tool for a construction company and occupants, while diminishing social costs by civil complaints and increasing productivity of the construction project.

Application of two risk assessment methods in ceramic manufacturing enterprises

Objective: To explore the applicability of Singapore semi-quantitative assessment method and international committee on mining and metals occupational health risk assessment method in occupational health risk assessment of ceramic enterprises. Methods: From March 2017 to May 2018, A ceramic enterprise was selected for the investigation and testing of occupational health, and the risk assessment of the occupational-disease-inductive factors in the workplace was conducted by the semi-quantitative assessment method of Singapore and the occupational health risk assessment method of the international committee on mining and metals. Results: The occupational-disease-inductive factors in the production process of this ceramic enterprise mainly include silicon dust, noise, high temperature, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and so on. The two risk assessment methods were applied to assess the risk of occupational-disease-inductive factors in the workplace, and the results showed that the high risk level was 16.67%, the medium risk level was 63.33%, and the low risk level was 20.00%. The risk level of silicon dust is from low risk to high risk. Conclusion: The semi-quantitative assessment method and the occupational health risk assessment method of the International Commission on Mining and Metals are simple to operate and practical, and are suitable for the assessment of occupational hazards in ceramic enterprises.

MODERN ISSUES OF THE HEALTH RISK ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT

The paper presents approaches to the implementation the basic paradigm of the development for the legislative and regulatory framework to ensure the sanitary and epidemiological welfare of the population based on the comprehensive implementation of the methodology of the health risk assessment and management. The consistent implementation of the legislative and regulatory framework should provide getting answers main questions: what, where, when, how we are to assess and above all how we have to manage and control health risks. The suggested approach involves the accumulation capacities and resources of all the stakeholders: State-Russian Federation constituent-municipality-economic entity-non-governmental organizations-population in the assessment, management and control health risks both for the public in general and for certain socio-economic groups. This integrated system is aimed at the decline of public health risks to levels that cannot be detected using current knowledge and methods. The described requirements for incorporation of health risk assessment, management and monitoring methods into the health, consumer rights and labor legislation framework and other areas of legislative regulation must be applicable for corporate entities’ and sole entrepreneurs’ various business activities that affect (pose a threat, create a risk, cause harm) public health as well as regulation of the social and economic development of the nation in general.

Distribution and health risk assessment of arsenic and selected heavy metals in Groundwater of Chandigarh, India

Groundwater quality of Chandigarh was assessed by collecting 80 groundwater samples from different depths varying between 10 ft and 1200 ft. These samples were analyzed for possible contamination with metal pollutants such as Al, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mo, Mg, Ni, Pb, V, Zn. Geospatial interpolation of the contaminants identified poor sanitary practices of waste management, agrarian activities, and industrial pollution as the prominent sources of groundwater contamination. Quality assessment of groundwater performed using Heavy metal Pollution Index (HPI), and Metal Index (MI) revealed HPI as a better method for health risk assessment. HPI indicate poor groundwater quality near municipal solid waste dumping sites and industrial areas of Chandigarh. The shallow aquifer was reported to be more contaminated than deeper aquifer. Further, health risk assessment of Chandigarh's groundwater indicated non-carcinogenic health impacts due to contamination of As, Cr, Co, Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn and carcinogenic health impacts from As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb. The study suggests that groundwater should also be regularly monitored for metal contamination as over-extraction, industrialization, disposal of municipal solid waste and informal E-waste recycling activities increases the public health risks in countries worldwide, facing similar environmental pollution problems of the groundwater.

Development of Comprehensive Occupational Health Risk Assessment (COHRA) Method: Case Study in a Petrochemical Industry

Development of Comprehensive Occupational Health Risk Assessment (COHRA) Method: Case Study in a Petrochemical Industry

The Human Health Risk Assessment Based on Process Simulation and Uncertainty Analysis

Water resource is an important part of human living and production. With the modernization of cities, the problem of groundwater contamination is becoming more and more serious. It is outstanding to effectively assess the risk of groundwater contamination to human health. This paper proposes a human health risk assessment method based on the simulation of contaminant transport process and parameter uncertainty analysis. The method combines health risk assessment with groundwater contaminant transport processes and applies the TOUGH2 program to simulate the temporal and spatial distribution of contaminant in groundwater. In order to improve the accuracy of the assessment results, the influence of the uncertainty of the transport model on human health risk assessment is taken into account. And the key parameter (e.g., the permeability) of the transport model is inversed by Markov chain Monte Carlo simulation method. Based on a sandbox experiment, the human health risk exposed to a typical dense non-aqueous phase liquids contaminant tetrachloroethylene (PCE) is evaluated by considering the parameter uncertainty of the PCE transport model, which confirmed that the method can provide decision-making information for the management and prevention of contaminated sites.

Environmental Chemicals in Breast Milk and Formula: Exposure and Risk Assessment Implications.

Background:Human health risk assessment methods have advanced in recent years to more accurately estimate risks associated with exposure during childhood. However, predicting risks related to infant exposures to environmental chemicals in breast milk and formula remains challenging.Objectives:Our goal was to compile available information on infant exposures to environmental chemicals in breast milk and formula, describe methods to characterize infant exposure and potential for health risk in the context of a risk assessment, and identify research needed to improve risk analyses based on this type of exposure and health risk information.Methods:We reviewed recent literature on levels of environmental chemicals in breast milk and formula, with a focus on data from the United States. We then selected three example publications that quantified infant exposure using breast milk or formula chemical concentrations and estimated breast milk or formula intake. The potential for health risk from these dietary exposures was then characterized by comparison with available health risk benchmarks. We identified areas of this approach in need of improvement to better characterize the potential for infant health risk from this critical exposure pathway.Discussion:Measurements of chemicals in breast milk and formula are integral to the evaluation of risk from early life dietary exposures to environmental chemicals. Risk assessments may also be informed by research investigating the impact of chemical exposure on developmental processes known to be active, and subject to disruption, during infancy, and by analysis of exposure–response data specific to the infant life stage. Critical data gaps exist in all of these areas.Conclusions:Better-designed studies are needed to characterize infant exposures to environmental chemicals in breast milk and infant formula as well as to improve risk assessments of chemicals found in both foods. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP1953

An Assessment of PM2.5-Related Health Risks and Associated Economic Losses in Chinese Cities

It is important to carry out research on health risks and associated economic losses caused by air pollution using a large sample city in order to control air pollution and improve public health literacy. Using environmental health risk and environmental value assessment methods, the health risks of PM2.5 pollution in 2015, as well as the corresponding economic losses, were estimated in this study using the environmental monitoring data of 62 key cities as samples. The results show that significant impacts due to PM2.5 pollution occurred in 2015, including about 125.1[95% confidence interval (CI):33.29-205.90] thousand premature deaths and 10.10 (95% CI:4.70-15.02) million cases of illness, hospital admissions, and outpatients, which accounted for 3.53% (95% CI:1.64%-5.26%) of the total urban population. The total economic loss associated with the health risks was approximately 570.6 (95% CI:193.08-874.21) billion yuan, which accounts for 1.53% (95% CI:0.52%-2.35%) of the total GDP in 2015. The per capita loss was 1970 (95% CI:667-3018) yuan for these cities. Among the four major urban agglomerations of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, the Yangtze River Delta, the Pearl River Delta, and Northeast China, Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei has the highest health risks, associated economic losses, the proportion of associated economic losses to GDP, and associated economic loss per capita because of its high concentration of PM2.5 and dense population than other three urban agglomerations. Among the three economic areas of Eastern, Central, and Western China, the health risks and associated economic losses were highest in the former. However, economic loss per capita did not differ greatly in the three economic areas. The difference in economic losses was very small between South and North China. However, the proportion of economic loss to GDP and per capita loss were much higher in the North than in the South. As to specific cities, the problems of health risks and economic losses were outstanding in Baoding, Zhengzhou, Jinan, and Beijing, which have higher PM2.5 concentrations.

Site selection for municipal solid waste landfill considering environmental health risks

The selection of a suitable site for a new municipal solid waste landfill is an effective means to reduce harm to human health and alleviate environmental pollution from its source. However, the current assessment method of potential harm to humans is not scientific and objective during the process of landfill site selection. The fuzzy age-sectioned groundwater environmental health risk assessment model was proposed based on the health risk assessment method of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the coupled methods of triangular fuzzy number and age section assignment. The methodology was applied as a case study to the groundwater environmental health risk assessment of a planned selection of a domestic waste landfill site in northwestern China. Results showed that the comprehensive health risk value of Site 1 is 66, whereas that of Site 2 is 69, Site 1 is better than Site 2, recommended Site1 as the right location. In contrast with the comman methods, this model could not only make the best recommendation scientifically and efficiently, but could also accurately calculate risk level, thereby providing more accurate assessment information to decision makers during the process of selecting a landfill site.

A Review of Methods for Assessing the Environmental Health Impacts of an Agricultural System.

(1) Background: Global agricultural production is projected to increase substantially in the coming decades. Agricultural production provides food and materials crucial to human survival and well-being and is a critical source of livelihood, providing employment opportunities and economic benefits. However, industrialized or intensified agricultural systems, in particular, can have adverse effects on public health, place pressure on natural resources, and reduce environmental sustainability. This review attempts to identify and characterize key environmental health assessment methods for examining a broad array of potential impacts; (2) Methods: Electronic databases Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, and GreenLINE were searched for published literature that presented methods for conducting an environmental health assessment of an agricultural system; (3) Results: Fifty-three sources were included in the review. Eight methods were selected to illustrate the wide range of approaches currently available: health risk assessment methods, health impact assessment, environmental impact assessment methods, environmental burden of disease, lifecycle methods, integrated assessment modeling, trade-off analysis, and economic assessment; (4) Conclusions: This review can provide guidance for selecting an existing method or for designing a new method for assessing the environmental health impacts of an agricultural system.

Shear wave elastography safety in fetus: A quantitative health risk assessment.

To identify the effects of shear wave elastography in the fetus for evaluation in widespread use. The Health Risk Assessment method proposed by the National Research Council was used with literature to evaluate the safety of shear wave elastography for the fetus regarding its potential effects in human tissues. The experimental and epidemiologic data from 25 articles showed that shear wave elastography maintained the same thermal effect as pulsed Doppler ultrasound already authorized in obstetrics, and that cavitation effect on fetal tissue is improbable. Nonetheless, the vibratory character of shear waves could induce displacement of fetal tissue while potential effects of very short duration energy peaks of the radiation force focused wave front remain unknown. The actual knowledge does not provide enough information to assess the effects of shear wave elastography on fetal tissues, thus these points have to be explored by further experimental studies.