Workers' Behavior and Hygienic Parameters Related to Blood Lead Levels: A Cross-Sectional Biomonitoring Study in an Italian Automotive Plant.
- 1Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L'Aquila, 67100 L'Aquila, Italy.
- 2Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Viale Montpellier 1, 00133 Rome, Italy.
- 3Environmental Research Centre, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri S.p.A. S.B., Via Atene 935010, Perarolo di Vigonza, 27100 Padova, Italy.
Abstract
Occupational lead exposure is a relevant health concern, but the relationships between lead exposure, biomarkers, and individual, occupational, and hygienic characteristics remain incompletely understood. This study investigated associations between blood lead (Pb) and zinc-protoporphyrin (ZnPP) levels and occupational, clinical, individual, lifestyle, and hygiene-related characteristics in 464 exposed workers. Occupational and individual data were collected and statistically analyzed to identify associations between biomarkers and categorical or continuous variables. Blue-collar and maintenance workers showed significantly higher blood Pb levels than white-collar workers (11.07 and 10.42 vs. 4.81 µg/dL). Unadjusted analyses showed higher blood Pb levels among forklift users and workers in production units 1 and 2. No statistically significant differences in ZnPP were observed across the occupational categories examined. Female sex, non-smoking status, and longer hair were associated with lower Pb levels. Exploratory multivariable analyses identified associations of ZnPP with hypertension and physical activity, but the model explained only 3.65% of its variance. As expected, due to the low concentrations of xenobiotics detected, a weak association was observed between blood Pb and ZnPP. Overall, the findings suggest modest associations between biomarker levels and select individual/occupational characteristics (such as hair length and forklift use). Given the low proportion of explained variance, these exploratory observations should be interpreted with caution and warrant further research.
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BibTeX
@article{tobia2026workers,
title = {{Workers' Behavior and Hygienic Parameters Related to Blood Lead Levels: A Cross-Sectional Biomonitoring Study in an Italian Automotive Plant.}},
author = {Loreta Tobia and Riccardo Mastrantonio and Mario Muselli and Giorgia Nobili and Danilo Cottica and Vincenza Cofini and Stefano Necozione and Leila Fabiani},
journal = {Toxics},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/toxics14100922},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42931709},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Workers' Behavior and Hygienic Parameters Related to Blood Lead Levels: A Cross-Sectional Biomonitoring Study in an Italian Automotive Plant.
AU - Loreta Tobia
AU - Riccardo Mastrantonio
AU - Mario Muselli
AU - Giorgia Nobili
AU - Danilo Cottica
AU - Vincenza Cofini
AU - Stefano Necozione
AU - Leila Fabiani
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/18
JO - Toxics
DO - 10.3390/toxics14100922
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42931709
AB - Occupational lead exposure is a relevant health concern, but the relationships between lead exposure, biomarkers, and individual, occupational, and hygienic characteristics remain incompletely understood. This study investigated associations between blood lead (Pb) and zinc-protoporphyrin (ZnPP) levels and occupational, clinical, individual, lifestyle, and hygiene-related characteristics in 464 exposed workers. Occupational and individual data were collected and statistically analyzed to identify associations between biomarkers and categorical or continuous variables. Blue-collar and maintenance workers showed significantly higher blood Pb levels than white-collar workers (11.07 and 10.42 vs. 4.81 µg/dL). Unadjusted analyses showed higher blood Pb levels among forklift users and workers in production units 1 and 2. No statistically significant differences in ZnPP were observed across the occupational categories examined. Female sex, non-smoking status, and longer hair were associated with lower Pb levels. Exploratory multivariable analyses identified associations of ZnPP with hypertension and physical activity, but the model explained only 3.65% of its variance. As expected, due to the low concentrations of xenobiotics detected, a weak association was observed between blood Pb and ZnPP. Overall, the findings suggest modest associations between biomarker levels and select individual/occupational characteristics (such as hair length and forklift use). Given the low proportion of explained variance, these exploratory observations should be interpreted with caution and warrant further research.
SN - 2305-6304
ER -