C. Edling et P. Lundberg, The significance of neurobehavioral tests for occupational exposure limits: An example from Sweden, NEUROTOXICO, 21(5), 2000, pp. 653-658
The setting of OELs is part of risk management It should, however, be kept
in mind that not only scientific data affects the outcome of an OEL but als
o cost-benefit and technical feasibility. During the last decades, neurobeh
avioral methods have been used increasingly in human studies to investigate
the effects of neurotoxic chemicals on the nervous system. Since exposure
levels in the workplace are becoming lower and lower, traditional epidemiol
ogy will face difficulties in revealing any effects. Therefore authorities
regulating chemicals must rely more and more on toxicological data and on r
esults from experimental human studies. It will then be crucial that sound
criteria for the validity of human neurobehavioral studies of neurotoxicity
are established if the results from neurobehavioral studies are to be used
in regulatory risk assessment. Because of the variation in individuals res
ponse to chemical exposures, exposure limits might nor be possible to set w
ith a view toward this range of susceptibility and the avoidance of any neu
ropathic effects. This paper discuss the Swedish experience when using neur
obehavioral data in deciding effects on the nervous system as the critical
effect (C) 2000 Infer Press, Inc.