Dose‐excretion relationship in tetrachloroethylene‐exposed workers and the effect of tetrachloroethylene co‐exposure on trichloroethylene metabolism

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Abstract
Personal monitoring of 8‐hour time‐weighted average intensity of exposure with diffuse samplers and analysis of shift‐end urine for total trichloro‐compounds (TTC) and other metabolites were conducted in two groups of workers in China, one (121 subjects) exposed to tetrachloroethylene (TETRA) alone, and the other (38 subjects) exposed to a mixture of TETRA and trichloroethylene (TRI). Urinalysis was also performed on samples from 103 non‐exposed controls. A linear exposure‐excretion relationship could be observed in both groups of workers. Comparison of these results with those of Japanese TETRA‐workers suggested the presence of ethnic difference in TETRA metabolism. Urinary metabolite levels were markedly lower in the mixed (TETRA + TRI) exposure group as compared to previous findings in a group exposed to TRI alone. The observation indicates that metabolism of TRI is suppressed by the co‐exposure to TETRA in humans.