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REVIEW article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Environmental Health and Exposome
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1411588

Exploring Noninvasive Matrices for Assessing Long-term Exposure to Phthalates: A Scoping Review

Provisionally accepted
Li-wen Chen Li-wen Chen 1Xin Chen Xin Chen 1*Hua-Yan Mo Hua-Yan Mo 1*Chun-Han Shan Chun-Han Shan 1*Ruo-Ping Zhu Ruo-Ping Zhu 2*Hui Gao Hui Gao 1*Fang-Biao Tao Fang-Biao Tao 3*
  • 1 First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
  • 2 Anhui Provincial Children’s Hospital, Hefei, Anhui Province, China
  • 3 Key Laboratory of Population Health Across Life Cycle (Anhui Medical University), Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China, Hefei, Anhui Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The phthalic acid esters (PAEs) are one class of the most abundant and frequently studied pseudopersistent organic pollutants. Noninvasive urine is an effective substrate for evaluating PAE exposure, but repeated sampling is needed to overcome this bias. This adds much work to on-site collection and the cost of detection increases exponentially. Therefore, the aim of this study was to conduct a scope review to describe the detection methods and validity of the use of other noninvasive matrices, such as nails and hair, for assessing long-term exposure to PAEs. The PubMed, Web of Science and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), electronic databases were searched from January 1, 2000, to April 3, 2024, and 12 studies were included. Nine and three studies used hair and nails, respectively, as noninvasive matrices for detecting PAE exposure. Five articles compared the results of nail or hair and urine tests for validity of the assessment of PAE exposure. The preprocessing and detection methods for these noninvasive samples are also described. The results of this review suggest that, compared with nails, hair may be more suitable as a noninvasive alternative matrix for assessing long-term exposure to PAEs. However, sample handling procedures such as the extraction and purification of compounds from hair are not uniform in various studies; therefore, further exploration and optimization of this process, and additional research evidence to evaluate its effectiveness, are needed to provide a scientific basis for the promotion and application of hair detection methods for assessing long-term PAE exposure levels.

    Keywords: Phthalate acid esters, nail, Hair, Noninvasive matrices, Long-term exposure

    Received: 03 Apr 2024; Accepted: 25 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Chen, Chen, Mo, Shan, Zhu, Gao and Tao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Xin Chen, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
    Hua-Yan Mo, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
    Chun-Han Shan, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
    Ruo-Ping Zhu, Anhui Provincial Children’s Hospital, Hefei, 230000, Anhui Province, China
    Hui Gao, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
    Fang-Biao Tao, Key Laboratory of Population Health Across Life Cycle (Anhui Medical University), Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China, Hefei, Anhui Province, China

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