Human absorption of crude coal tar products

Final Safety Assessment of Coal Tar as Used in Cosmetics

“…The results showed similar enzyme activities before and after treatment indicating the effect of Coal Tar on AHH activity is restricted to the treated skin surface (Hukkelhoven et al 1984). Storer et al (1984) gave five volunteers 85 g of a 2%-Crude Coal Tar in petrolatum preparation and instructed them to apply the medication to the trunk and extremities. The application was to be done at night and removed 8 h later on each of 2 successive days.…”

Urinary excretion and DNA binding of coal tar components in B6C3F1 mice following ingestion

“…The relative level of 1-hydroxypyrene detected in urine increased as the pyrene content in coal tar samples increased. The detection of 1-hydroxypyrene as a major metabolite in urine is not unexpected since other investigators have demonstrated the usefulness of 1-hydroxypyrene as a biological monitor of exposure to PAHs (9)(10)(11). Clonfero et al (30) recently determined that urinary mutagenicity and 1-hydroxypyrene levels correlated in humans treated with therapeutic coal tar preparations.…”

Systemic Exposure to PAHs and Benzene in Firefighters Suppressing Controlled Structure Fires

“…Several studies have measured dermal absorption of PAHs (Storer et al , 1984; Kao et al , 1985; VanRooij et al , 1993; Roy et al , 1998) and benzene vapor (Maibach and Anjo, 1981; Franz, 1984; Thrall et al , 2000; Wester and Maibach, 2000). VanRooij et al (1993) found that 20–56% of PAHs (as a low dose of coal tar) on the skin will be absorbed within 6h depending on the anatomical site of the dose.…”