Details:

Alternative Title:
MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep
Personal Author:
Beaucham, Catherine; Page, Elena; Alarcon, Walter A.; Calvert, Geoffrey M.; Methner, Mark; ... More +
Beaucham, Catherine; Page, Elena; Alarcon, Walter A.; Calvert, Geoffrey M.; Methner, Mark; Schoonover, Todd M.; Less -
Description:
Indoor firing ranges are a source of lead exposure and elevated blood lead levels (BLLs) among employees, their families, and customers, despite public health outreach efforts and comprehensive guidelines for controlling occupational lead exposure. There are approximately 16,000-18,000 indoor firing ranges in the United States, with tens of thousands of employees. Approximately 1 million law enforcement officers train on indoor ranges. To estimate how many adults had elevated BLLs (≥10 µg/dL) as a result of exposure to lead from shooting firearms, data on elevated BLLs from the Adult Blood Lead Epidemiology and Surveillance (ABLES) program managed by CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) were examined by source of lead exposure. During 2002-2012, a total of 2,056 persons employed in the categories "police protection" and "other amusement and recreation industries (including firing ranges)" had elevated BLLs reported to ABLES; an additional 2,673 persons had non-work-related BLLs likely attributable to target shooting. To identify deficiencies at two indoor firing ranges linked to elevated BLLs, the Washington State Division of Occupational Safety and Health (WaDOSH) and NIOSH conducted investigations in 2012 and 2013, respectively. The WaDOSH investigation found a failure to conduct personal exposure and biologic monitoring for lead and also found dry sweeping of lead-containing dust. The NIOSH investigation found serious deficiencies in ventilation, housekeeping, and medical surveillance. Public health officials and clinicians should ask about occupations and hobbies that might involve lead when evaluating findings of elevated BLLs. Interventions for reducing lead exposure in firing ranges include using lead-free bullets, improving ventilation, and using wet mopping or high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) vacuuming to clean.
Subject:
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Adult
Air Pollution, Indoor
Articles
Environmental Exposure
Firearms
Humans
Lead
Lead Poisoning
Occupational Diseases
Occupational Exposure
Population Surveillance

Source:
MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2014; 63(16):347-351.;
Pubmed ID:
24759656
Pubmed Central ID:
PMC4584776
Document Type:
Journal Article;
Place as Subject:
United States;
Collection(s):
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
Main Document Checksum:
[+]
urn:sha256:69d6bcb54f4f135c2f63a17f5fd1945bebdfde214f976297e27a99ccd82a1017
File Type:

Supporting Files

• 347-351.nxml

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