Occupational exposure of workers at gas station to inorganic lead

Exposure to the lead is public health problem and threat to environment with proven harmful impact on human, including industrial workers and general population. Harmful impacts of exposition to nervous, endocrine, hematological, cardiovascular, immune and reproductive system to the lead are well known. This article addresses the results of retrospective research carried out with attendants at gas station and those who are professionally exposed to inorganic lead (n=73; n=81), during the course of two periodic reviews performed in 2003 and 2008. All subjects underwent physical examination, ECG, were measured blood pressure and laboratory tests encompassing basic hematological parameters, including measuring of blood lead level (BLL), as bioindicators of exposure and biomarkers of toxic impact of the lead, by the means of determining concentration of 6-aminolevulinic acid in urine (ALA).Valued obtained included (arithmetic mean +/- standard deviation): for BLL 42.5 +/- 26.2 microg/L(-1), for ALA 35.2 +/- 10.6 micromol/L(-1). Quoted values are within normal values for general population. Correlation test established positive correlation between BLL and hematological parameters, number of erythrocytes, concentration of hemoglobin and MCV, and the same correlation ratio was established between BLL and years of age, years of service and exposition years of service as well as BLL and GGT. There was not established correlation between ALA and observed hematological parameters, BLL and systole pressure. Data from our research indicate unification between professional exposure to lead and duration of exposure and increase of concentration of BLL, which are far bellow marginalvalue, but do exceed average values of BLL for people of industrial countries with possible generation of harmful impact of lead. Likewise, the results suggest the increase of overall lead load in the body does not have to be necessarily only the result of professional exposure, but of the intake through other channels as well.