Monitoring Indoor Exposure to Organophosphate Flame Retardants: Hand Wipes and House Dust

Overview

Journal Environ Health Perspect

Date 2014 Oct 25

PMID 25343780

Citations 92

Authors

Kate Hoffman

Stavros Garantziotis

Linda S Birnbaum

Heather M Stapleton

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Organophosphate flame retardants (PFRs) are becoming popular replacements for the phased-out polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) mixtures, and they are now commonly detected in indoor environments. However, little is known about human exposure to PFRs because they cannot be easily measured in blood or serum.

Objectives: To investigate relationships between the home environment and internal exposure, we assessed associations between two PFRs, tris(1,3-dichloropropyl) phosphate (TDCIPP) and triphenyl phosphate (TPHP), in paired hand wipe and dust samples and concentrations of their metabolites in urine samples (n = 53). We also assessed short-term variation in urinary metabolite concentrations (n = 11 participants; n = 49 samples).

Methods: Adult volunteers in North Carolina, USA, completed questionnaires and provided urine, hand wipe, and household dust samples. PFRs and PBDEs were measured in hand wipes and dust, and bis(1,3-dichloropropyl) phosphate (BDCIPP) and diphenyl phosphate (DPHP), metabolites of TDCIPP and TPHP, were measured in urine.

Results: TDCIPP and TPHP were detected frequently in hand wipes and dust (> 86.8%), with geometric mean concentrations exceeding those of PBDEs. Unlike PBDEs, dust TDCIPP and TPHP levels were not associated with hand wipes. However, hand wipe levels were associated with urinary metabolites. Participants with the highest hand wipe TPHP mass, for instance, had DPHP levels 2.42 times those of participants with the lowest levels (95% CI: 1.23, 4.77). Women had higher levels of DPHP, but not BDCIPP. BDCIPP and DPHP concentrations were moderately to strongly reliable over 5 consecutive days (intraclass correlation coefficients of 0.81 and 0.51, respectively).

Conclusions: PFR exposures are widespread, and hand-to-mouth contact or dermal absorption may be important pathways of exposure.

Citing Articles

Mitigating the environmental effects of healthcare: the role of the endocrinologist.

Rizan C, Rotchell J, Eng P, Robaire B, Ciocan C, Kapoor N Nat Rev Endocrinol. 2025; .

PMID: 40082727 DOI: 10.1038/s41574-025-01098-9.

Lifestyle factors and urine levels of organophosphorus flame retardants in endometrial cancer: insights from a case-control study.

Ou Y, Cheng F, Huang W, Lee W, Fu H, Wu C Environ Health Prev Med. 2024; 29:63.

PMID: 39523006 PMC: 11570647. DOI: 10.1265/ehpm.24-00175.

Urinary Concentrations of Organophosphate Flame-Retardant Metabolites in the US Population.

Huang Y, Shi H, Huang X, Pan Y, Wang Y, Gao Z JAMA Netw Open. 2024; 7(9):e2435484.

PMID: 39320888 PMC: 11425145. DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.35484.

Unlocking the genomic potential of Red Sea coral probiotics.

Raimundo I, Rosado P, Barno A, Antony C, Peixoto R Sci Rep. 2024; 14(1):14514.

PMID: 38914624 PMC: 11196684. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-65152-8.

Association between organophosphate flame retardant exposure and lipid metabolism: data from the 2013-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

Cheng F, Tsai K, Huang K, Kung C, Huang W, You H Front Public Health. 2024; 12:1340261.

PMID: 38525338 PMC: 10959188. DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1340261.

References

Stapleton H, Eagle S, Sjodin A, Webster T . Serum PBDEs in a North Carolina toddler cohort: associations with handwipes, house dust, and socioeconomic variables. Environ Health Perspect. 2012; 120(7):1049-54. PMC: 3404669. DOI: 10.1289/ehp.1104802. View

Stapleton H, Klosterhaus S, Keller A, Ferguson P, van Bergen S, Cooper E . Identification of flame retardants in polyurethane foam collected from baby products. Environ Sci Technol. 2011; 45(12):5323-31. PMC: 3113369. DOI: 10.1021/es2007462. View

Dodson R, Perovich L, Covaci A, Van den Eede N, Ionas A, Dirtu A . After the PBDE phase-out: a broad suite of flame retardants in repeat house dust samples from California. Environ Sci Technol. 2012; 46(24):13056-66. PMC: 3525011. DOI: 10.1021/es303879n. View

Meeker J, Stapleton H . House dust concentrations of organophosphate flame retardants in relation to hormone levels and semen quality parameters. Environ Health Perspect. 2010; 118(3):318-23. PMC: 2854757. DOI: 10.1289/ehp.0901332. View

Weschler C, Nazaroff W . SVOC exposure indoors: fresh look at dermal pathways. Indoor Air. 2012; 22(5):356-77. DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0668.2012.00772.x. View

Lynn R, Wong K, Kennish J . Disposition of the flame retardant, tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate, in the rat. Drug Metab Dispos. 1981; 9(5):434-41. View

Van den Eede N, Dirtu A, Neels H, Covaci A . Analytical developments and preliminary assessment of human exposure to organophosphate flame retardants from indoor dust. Environ Int. 2010; 37(2):454-61. DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2010.11.010. View

Shrout P, Fleiss J . Intraclass correlations: uses in assessing rater reliability. Psychol Bull. 1979; 86(2):420-8. DOI: 10.1037//0033-2909.86.2.420. View

Boeniger M, Lowry L, Rosenberg J . Interpretation of urine results used to assess chemical exposure with emphasis on creatinine adjustments: a review. Am Ind Hyg Assoc J. 1993; 54(10):615-27. DOI: 10.1080/15298669391355134. View

10.

Hoffman K, Daniels J, Stapleton H . Urinary metabolites of organophosphate flame retardants and their variability in pregnant women. Environ Int. 2013; 63:169-72. PMC: 3932676. DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2013.11.013. View

11.

Stapleton H, Sharma S, Getzinger G, Ferguson P, Gabriel M, Webster T . Novel and high volume use flame retardants in US couches reflective of the 2005 PentaBDE phase out. Environ Sci Technol. 2012; 46(24):13432-9. PMC: 3525014. DOI: 10.1021/es303471d. View

12.

Bradman A, Kogut K, Eisen E, Jewell N, Quiros-Alcala L, Castorina R . Variability of organophosphorous pesticide metabolite levels in spot and 24-hr urine samples collected from young children during 1 week. Environ Health Perspect. 2012; 121(1):118-24. PMC: 3553429. DOI: 10.1289/ehp.1104808. View

13.

Bergh C, Luongo G, Wise S, Ostman C . Organophosphate and phthalate esters in standard reference material 2585 organic contaminants in house dust. Anal Bioanal Chem. 2011; 402(1):51-9. DOI: 10.1007/s00216-011-5440-2. View

14.

Belcher S, Cookman C, Patisaul H, Stapleton H . In vitro assessment of human nuclear hormone receptor activity and cytotoxicity of the flame retardant mixture FM 550 and its triarylphosphate and brominated components. Toxicol Lett. 2014; 228(2):93-102. PMC: 4180444. DOI: 10.1016/j.toxlet.2014.04.017. View

15.

Farhat A, Crump D, Chiu S, Williams K, Letcher R, Gauthier L . In Ovo effects of two organophosphate flame retardants--TCPP and TDCPP--on pipping success, development, mRNA expression, and thyroid hormone levels in chicken embryos. Toxicol Sci. 2013; 134(1):92-102. DOI: 10.1093/toxsci/kft100. View

16.

van der Veen I, de Boer J . Phosphorus flame retardants: properties, production, environmental occurrence, toxicity and analysis. Chemosphere. 2012; 88(10):1119-53. DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2012.03.067. View

17.

Stapleton H, Klosterhaus S, Eagle S, Fuh J, Meeker J, Blum A . Detection of organophosphate flame retardants in furniture foam and U.S. house dust. Environ Sci Technol. 2009; 43(19):7490-5. PMC: 2782704. DOI: 10.1021/es9014019. View

18.

Staaf T, Ostman C . Organophosphate triesters in indoor environments. J Environ Monit. 2005; 7(9):883-7. DOI: 10.1039/b506631j. View

19.

Cao Z, Xu F, Covaci A, Wu M, Yu G, Wang B . Differences in the seasonal variation of brominated and phosphorus flame retardants in office dust. Environ Int. 2014; 65:100-6. DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2013.12.011. View

20.

Watkins D, McClean M, Fraser A, Weinberg J, Stapleton H, Sjodin A . Exposure to PBDEs in the office environment: evaluating the relationships between dust, handwipes, and serum. Environ Health Perspect. 2011; 119(9):1247-52. PMC: 3230398. DOI: 10.1289/ehp.1003271. View