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Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
Sampling for bioburden, such as fungi and bacteria, in occupational environments, can provide valuable information needed to characterize the exposure conditions, decide whether the contamination signifies a potential hazard to health, and establish the need for control measures. This study intends to suggest the best active sampling approach for the occupational exposure assessment to bioburden in Portuguese bakeries. Twenty air samples were collected through an impaction and impinger methods and two different culture media were used in order to enhance the selectivity for bacterial and fungal populations growth: tryptic soy agar (TSA) supplemented with nystatin (0.2%) used for mesophilic bacterial population and violet red bile agar (VRBA) for bacteria belonging to the Enterobacteriaceae family (e.g. coliforms – Gram-negative bacteria) and malt extract agar (MEA) supplemented with chloramphenicol (0.05%) and dichloran glycerol (DG18) agar-based media were used for fungi. Among the two methods - impaction and impinger - statistically significant differences were observed in the following counts: fungal on MEA (z = -2.721, p = 0.007), fungal on DG18 (z = -4.830, p = 0.000), total bacteria (z= -5.435, p = 0.000) and bacteria Gram – (z = -3.716, p = 0.000). In either case, it has been found that the impaction method detects significantly higher concentrations than the impinger method. Further studies should be performed to propose a more refined protocol to be suggested to exposure assessors that have the bioburden risk characterization as a daily task.
Description
Autoridade para as Condições de Trabalho - Projeto 005DDB/12
Keywords
Occupational health Occupational exposure Bioburden Bakery Portugal Projeto 005DDB/12
Citation
Viegas C, Monteiro A, Carolino E, Viegas S. What sampling method to apply for the occupational exposure assessment to bioburden in Portuguese bakeries? In: 9th International Conference on the Science of Exposure Assessment, Manchester (UK), September 24-26, 2018.