Risk Assessment

Anthropogenic impacts on marine ecosystems have developed into a dominating and formative force within coastal regions. One of the strongest influences within these coastal anthropogenic zones is the deposition and life cycle of marine plastic waste.

King County, Washington currently ranks 3rd in the nation for the number of people experiencing homelessness. Amid an affordability housing crisis, the number of people experiencing homelessness continues to grow in Seattle. People in historically redlined communities of Seattle disproportionately experience homelessness because of gentrification.

Exposure to per-and poly-fluorinated substances is increasingly in the public eye. The National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine released a report advising increase surveillance screening for those exposed to high levels.

This project involved conducting an exposure assessment in the paint shop at Seattle City Light to evaluate

Background: Ozone is a popular water sterilization agent utilized in marine mammal husbandry to maintain the pool water in the animal enclosures. The health hazards posed by ozone are well understood, but its role as an occupational hazard, especially in marine mammal husbandry, is understudied and not well characterized.

Introduction: The expansion of the U.S. cannabis industry has created thousands of new jobs in cultivation, processing and distribution. While little is known about occupational hazards in the Cannabis industry, pilot studies suggest an increased risk of respiratory exposures and associated adverse health outcomes, including immunologic sensitization to Cannabis.

Background: There are a little under a million U.S. early childhood education (ECE) workers in 2020, and the ergonomic risk factors pertinent in this workforce is understudied. The purpose of the study was to conduct detailed worksite observations to comprehensively describe prevalence, durations, and frequencies of workplace exposures.

Workers who come into contact with tuberculosis (TB) patients are at elevated risk of TB infection and disease. Tongue swabbing is an alternative diagnostic sample collection approach that was designed to mitigate this risk. This study assessed risk perceptions among healthcare workers (HCWs) using tongue swabs for TB diagnosis in South Africa during a respiratory virus pandemic.

Artificial stone countertops are the centerpiece of countless modern kitchen remodels, but the process of fabricating these surfaces has recently gained attention due to high occupational exposures to fine silica dust, known as respirable crystalline silica (RCS). This report summarizes OSHA State Plan health compliance inspections of stone countertop fabricators in King County, WA.

Approximately 26% of the total global population is of reproductive age and experiences a menstrual cycle, which equates to about half of the global population who are women (House et al. 2012; Kim 2021). During menstruation, menstrual products are used to collect blood and other vaginal discharge from the vaginal opening.

Neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and related dementias (ADRD), affect over 47 million people worldwide, and this number is anticipated to reach 131.5 million by 2050.

Objectives: Suicide and unintentional deaths related to firearms are a problem in the United States. Findings cited by the National Center for Health Statistics show a 33% increase in the U.S. suicide rate over the past two decades.

No study has been undertaken in Washington state to determine if there is an association between agricultural fairs and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) infections, despite a fair-associated outbreak in 2015 that sickened 60 people.

The goal for environmental justice is for everyone to have a healthy environment in which to live, learn, work, play and worship. Community-academic partnerships have been effective in addressing environmental health disparities in various settings.

An occupational noise exposure assessment aboard a U. S.

Wildfire events are increasing in prevalence in the western United States. Research has found mixed results on the degree to which exposure to wildfire smoke increases the risk of mortality.

Background: Legalization of recreational cannabis in multiple states, including Washington, has scaled up cultivation of this plant. This rise in cultivation also raises health and safety concerns for workers in this emerging industry.

Anthropogenic climate change is expected to influence pest dynamics and pesticide application timing and rate, but little research has attempted to quantify the relationship or associated health impacts. Changing pesticide applications will impact risk of human exposure, particularly in agricultural communities.

Cryptosporidium and giardia are diarrhea-causing microscopic parasites transmitted through ingestion of fecally contaminated water. Both parasites can have a significant impact on the health and financial burden of communities.

Cadmium (Cd) is a ubiquitous toxic heavy metal of high interest to the Superfund initiative. It causes toxic effects to many organs, including kidney, liver, lung, and bone. Cd is also a potential neurotoxicant.

Objective: Determine the association between occupational exposure to copper or aluminum and incidence of all-cause dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

Background: Salmonellosis is a common food-borne gastrointestinal infection causing diarrhea, upset stomach, and sometimes vomiting. Each year there are 600-800 cases of salmonellosis reported to the Washington State Department of Health.