Urinary mutagenicity as an indicator of occupational exposure in a cohort of cosmetologists

Epidemiological studies suggest a higher risk of hematopoietic disorders including lymphoma among cosmetologists. The etiology of these disorders among cosmetologists is unknown, but beauticians are exposed to a wide variety of chemicals in the workplace. In this study, the urinary mutagenicity of cosmetologists was studied as an indicator of occupational exposure. A microsuspension modification of the Ames assay with Salmonella typhimurium strain TA98 was used to detect direct-acting mutagens and promutagens in urine. A comparable group of teachers of similar age and gender, and living in the same geographic area was used as the control group. There was no elevated risk for urinary mutagenicity among the cosmetologists after controlling for a number of confounders including smoking. In a multivariate model, smoking regularly or within 24 h of sample collection was found to be positively associated with urinary mutagenicity among both groups. The number of cigarettes smoked daily, age, and length of employment were not associated with urinary mutagenicity. Analysis of urine samples collected successively from each participant showed a fair to good agreement between promutagens in samples, suggesting a fairly constant exposure to promutagens.