Details:

Alternative Title:
Environ Health Perspect
Personal Author:
Backer, Lorraine C. ; Kirkpatrick, Barbara ; Fleming, Lora E. ; Cheng, Yung Sung ; Pierce, Richard ; ... More +
Backer, Lorraine C. ; Kirkpatrick, Barbara ; Fleming, Lora E. ; Cheng, Yung Sung ; Pierce, Richard ; Bean, Judy A. ; Clark, Richard ; Johnson, David ; Wanner, Adam ; Tamer, Robert ; Zhou, Yue ; Baden, Daniel G. ; Less -
Description:
Karenia brevis (formerly Gymnodinium breve) is a marine dinoflagellate responsible for red tides that form in the Gulf of Mexico. K. brevis produces brevetoxins, the potent toxins that cause neurotoxic shellfish poisoning. There is also limited information describing human health effects from environmental exposures to brevetoxins. Our objective was to examine the impact of inhaling aerosolized brevetoxins during red tide events on self-reported symptoms and pulmonary function. We recruited a group of 28 healthy lifeguards who are occupationally exposed to red tide toxins during their daily work-related activities. They performed spirometry tests and reported symptoms before and after their 8-hr shifts during a time when there was no red tide (unexposed period) and again when there was a red tide (exposed period). We also examined how mild exercise affected the reported symptoms and spirometry tests during unexposed and exposed periods with a subgroup of the same lifeguards. Environmental sampling (K. brevis cell concentrations in seawater and brevetoxin concentrations in seawater and air) was used to confirm unexposed/exposed status. Compared with unexposed periods, the group of lifeguards reported more upper respiratory symptoms during the exposed periods. We did not observe any impact of exposure to aerosolized brevetoxins, with or without mild exercise, on pulmonary function.
Subject:
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Adolescent
Adult
Aerosol
Animals
Brevetoxins
Dinoflagellida
Exercise
Female
Florida
Humans
Inhalation Exposure
Karenia Brevis
Lifeguards
Male
Marine Toxins
Mini-Monograph: Brevetoxins
Occupational Exposure
Oxocins
Pulmonary Function
Recreation
Red Tide
Respiratory Tract Diseases
Seawater
Spirometry
Swimming

Source:
Environ Health Perspect. 113(5):644-649.
Document Type:
Journal Article ;
Collection(s):
CDC Public Access
Main Document Checksum:
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urn:sha256:3ff064efc02536fd7d68c808c3d482ea37e1beb44f3b0ebc29e679560a966548
File Type:

Supporting Files

• 	ehp0113-000644.nxml	txt
  	license.txt	txt

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