Urinary concentrations of pyrethroid metabolites in the convenience sample of an urban population of Northern Poland

Urinary concentrations of pyrethroid metabolites were measured in the first void urine samples collected from 132 healthy people living in the Gdansk region of Northern Poland in 2010 and 2011. Four metabolites of synthetic pyrethroids: cis- and trans-3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane-1-carboxylic acids (cis-, trans-Cl(2)CA), cis-3-(2,2-dibromovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (Br(2)CA) and 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (3-PBA) were simultaneously liquid-liquid extracted, derivatized with hexafluoroisopropanol and analyzed by a gas chromatography ion-trap mass spectrometry. All the analytes were detected and quantified in the samples with various frequency, 3-phenoxybenzoic being the most often (80%) and the others less frequently (7-11%). Distribution of 3-PBA concentrations followed log-normal model, the mean concentration of 3-phenoxybenzoic acid: 0.393 mu g/L (0.327 mu g/g creatinine) is similar to those of the other general populations in various regions of the world. Neither sex nor age were predictors of urinary 3-PBA. Our findings suggest wide exposure to pyrethroid insecticides in the Polish general population. There is a continuous need to further study the exposure to synthetic pyrethroids among the general population since there is a strong, increasing trend in their usage. (C) 2012 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.