Human biomonitoring is ideal for determining whether people have been exposed to a chemical substance, but until now it has often just been part of occupational surveillance routines or environmental surveys. But a clear protocol for first responders is also needed in order to understand the effects of (minor) chemical accidents and exposure to hazardous materials. ‘There’s no need to reinvent the wheel’.

In the event of major (chemical) accidents, you usually already take biological samples from the victims and emergency workers. But measuring exposure can also provide useful information in the case of smaller leaks and spills. A paper in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology therefore argues for better preparation before accidents. ‘After all, you don’t know in advance when leakages and spills will occur’, says Michael Bader, expert and head of human biomonitoring (HBM) at BASF Ludwigshafen in Germany.