Monitoring for Dermal Exposure

Two broad categories for monitoring dermal exposure exist - direct and indirect:

• Direct monitoring entails assessing what is deposited onto the skin. The most common method of direct monitoring is the use of dermal dosimeters in the form of either patches or whole-body suits. In contrast to patches, whole-body suits resemble long underwear. Other methods of direct monitoring include skin washes and wipes, and video detection of fluorescent tracers, wherein a dye is applied to the skin to illuminate substances that cannot be seen with the naked eye.
• Indirect monitoring entails estimating the dermal dose of exposure, either as attributable to some biologic indicator that is actually measured or that which could potentially result from a contaminant measured on an accessible surface. Indirect methods refer primarily to measuring a biologic response, such as cholinesterase activity in blood or urinary excretion, but also include measuring surface contamination.

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