NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document
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detoxification methods are not being recommended by the
DOH.
• Why isn’t the DOH recommending that local residents be
tested for toxins in the blood?
Results of routine air monitoring have not Indicated that medical
testing for environmental contaminants is necessary in the general
public. In addition, there are no reliable medical tests that can
detect short-term, low level exposures to asbestos or other fibers
(including fiberglass.) When medical tests are available for
environmental contaminants, they only indicate previous
exposures. These tests cannot determine where, when, or how
long the individual was exposed or whether they will develop health
effects related to these exposures.
Medical tests exist for heavy metals, including elemental mercury
and lead. The preferred test for lead exposure is a blood test while
the most accurate test for environmental exposure to elemental
mercury is a urine test. The DOH has investigated reports of
elevated mercury among four workers at the site and found that
Initial tests of blood mercury were slightly elevated. Blood mercury
can be elevated if a person has consumed fish within sixty days of
the test. Urine mercury is a more specific test for exposures to
metallic (elemental) mercury, the type of mercury of concern for
occupational exposures. Follow-up urine tests of these workers did
not reveal elevated mercury levels. Personal air sampling at the
site among individual workers found that mercury was not elevated
in the air. Given these low levels found in both clinical and
environmental sampling at the site, at this time testing residents for
mercury levels is not warranted.
Medical tests exist to measure levels of RGBs and dioxins in blood,
body fat, and breast milk, but these are not routinely conducted for
community exposures because most people have low levels of
these substances in their bodies already.
Ill OUTDOOR RELATED ISSUES
A. Outdoor Air Testing
• Who is doing research on the synergistic effects of the various
toxic substances together in the outdoor air?
• Since the only standards for assessing the impact of asbestos
are for occupational exposure over 20 years, does this mean
that residents of Lower Manhattan could be more at risk for a
r-
NYC-WTC_000142748
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