Longitudinal study of serum lipids and liver enzymes in workers with occupational exposure to ammonium perfluorooctanoate.

Abstract

To examine the relationship between serum perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), a biomarker of ammonium perfluorooctanoate exposure, and lipids and liver enzymes. We conducted a longitudinal study on 454 workers and used mixed models to examine the relationship between serum PFOA and lipids and liver enzymes. One part per million (ppm) increase in serum PFOA was associated with a 1.06 mg/dL increase in total cholesterol, but was not associated with changes in triglycerides or other lipoproteins, after adjusting for potential confounders. Serum PFOA was also associated with total bilirubin (0.008 mg/dL decline/ppm) and serum aspartate aminotransferase (0.35 units increase/ppm) but not with the other liver enzymes. These medical surveillance data collected on workers for up to 25 years contributes useful information on the effects of ammonium perfluorooctanoate exposure on human liver and lipid chemistry.