Title
Advanced REACH tool: A Bayesian model for occupational exposure assessment
Author
McNally, K.
Warren, N.
Fransman, W.
Entink, R.K.
Schinkel, J.
Van Tongeren, M.
Cherrie, J.W.
Kromhout, H.
Schneider, T.
Tielemans, E.
Publication year
2014
Abstract
This paper describes a Bayesian model for the assessment of inhalation exposures in an occupational setting; the methodology underpins a freely available web-based application for exposure assessment, the Advanced REACH Tool (ART). The ART is a higher tier exposure tool that combines disparate sources of information within a Bayesian statistical framework. The information is obtained from expert knowledge expressed in a calibrated mechanistic model of exposure assessment, data on interand intra-individual variability in exposures from the literature, and context-specific exposure measurements. The ART provides central estimates and credible intervals for different percentiles of the exposure distribution, for full-shift and long-term average exposures. The ART can produce exposure estimates in the absence of measurements, but the precision of the estimates improves as more data become available. The methodology presented in this paper is able to utilize partially analogous data, a novel approach designed to make efficient use of a sparsely populated measurement database although some additional research is still required before practical implementation. The methodology is demonstrated using two worked examples: an exposure to copper pyrithione in the spraying of antifouling paints and an exposure to ethyl acetate in shoe repair. © 2014 Crown copyright.
Subject
Life
RAPID - Risk Assessment Products in Development
ELSS - Earth, Life and Social Sciences
Work and Employment
Workplace
Healthy Living
Bayesian exposure assessment
chemical regulation
occupational exposure
REACH
Antifouling paint
Repair
Chemical regulation
Exposure assessment
Exposure distribution
Occupational exposure
Occupational exposure assessments
REACH
Sources of informations
Web-based applications
Bayesian networks
To reference this document use:
http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:14f8a3d5-2301-497f-9796-5d832729a753
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1093/annhyg/meu017
TNO identifier
507094
ISSN
1475-3162
Source
Annals of Occupational Hygiene, 58 (5), 551-565
Document type
article