Use of Biological Monitoring to Assess Health Damage from Environmental Pollution with Metals

Introduction: The government system of public health monitoring was created in order to eliminate adverse health effects of environmental factors in humans. The use of human biological specimens as markers of effect of environmental pollution makes it possible to assess the dynamics of concentrations and levels of exposure to priority metals, to identify territories with the highest and lowest levels of priority metals, and to predict both negative and positive changes in response of critical organs and systems based on trend analysis.

Objective: To develop a biomonitoring algorithm to improve objectivity of assessing human health damage caused by environmental pollution with metals.

Materials and methods: Concentrations of metals in human biological specimens were measured by atomic absorption spectrometry in 2000-2020. Cause-and-effect relationships were established by mathematical modeling of the relationship between the dose of exposure at its various pathways and metal concentrations in human blood, urine, hair and nail specimens.

Results: We propose a biological monitoring program, which includes determination of territories of the highest potential risk of health damage causes by priority metals, of exposure zones and monitoring points spatially linked to economic entities classified as those posing extremely high and high potential human health risks, of the size of population at risk and particular risk groups, as well as substantiation of priority metals of natural and man-made origin, media and pathways of exposure based on the results of proven causal relationships in the system “exposure – marker of exposure – marker of effect”, the study and dynamic assessment priority metal concentrations in biological specimens of individuals at risk. The detection of increased levels of metals in biological specimens may indicate that the environmental pollution is dangerous to human health and requires managerial decision making as a means of managing health risks and eliminating health damage manifested by diseases associated with metal exposure.

Conclusion: The suggested algorithm of biological monitoring, aimed at establishing and eliminating adverse effects of environmental factors in humans will contribute to the development of the public health monitoring system in terms of determining and specifying priority territories, zones, control points, and relevant indicators for inclusion in monitoring programs. The results of biological monitoring of metals can be included in the substantiating materials of expert opinions, used in justifying the prosecution of persons guilty of pollution of the environment with metals due to proven violations of mandatory sanitary and epidemiological requirements by economic entities that caused harm to public health, in justifying and evaluating the effectiveness of sanitary, hygienic, and preventive measures.

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