Potential pathways and exposure to explain the human body burden of organochlorine compounds: a multivariate statistical analysis of human monitoring in Würzburg, Germany

By means of multivariate statistical analysis of human monitoring in the vicinity of Würzburg it is examined whether the organochlorine levels in blood data of 309 persons can in part be explained by pollution from outdoor and/or indoor air. Although diet is the main source for intake this study concentrated on the remaining sources. Using 12 personal and geographical variables, which describe some aspects or components of indoor or outdoor exposure, the quantities of the different pathways for the intake are calculated and shown. Besides the impact of the indoor air, which can be pointed out for intake at the workplace for some PCB-congeners, also the hypothesis of the existence of an intake from outdoor air for some organochlorine compounds cannot be rejected. Here, the origin is the spatial variation of the pollution, which can be directly traced back to micro-climatic processes, local relief conditions, and the functional set-up of the town.