Monitoring System For Collecting And/Or Transdermally Rediffusing Air Containing Environmental Contaminants, And Corresponding Method

• US 20070289360A1
• Filed: 08/06/2005
• Published: 12/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LTS Lohmann Therapie-Systeme AG
• Original Assignee: LTS Lohmann Therapie-Systeme AG
• Inventors: Sameti, Mohammad, Przybylla, Yves-Thorsten, Schmitz, Christoph, Horstmann, Michael, Schutz, Christina
• Granted Patent: US 7,640,816 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 73/23.350
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/00 Measuring for diagnostic purposes radiation diagnosis A61B6/00; diagnosis by ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic waves A61B8/00; Identification of persons
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6833 Adhesive patches
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 1/2273 Atmospheric sampling
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2001/2223 aerosol sampling devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2001/2276 Personal monitors
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2001/2833 Collecting samples on a sticky, tacky, adhesive surface
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2013/003 Diffusion; diffusivity between liquids

Abstract

Disclosed is a monitoring system for collecting and/or transdermally rediffusing air containing environmental contaminants. The inventive monitoring system generally includes at least one diffusion collector and/or an equilibrium diffuser. The diffusion collector is provided with at least three layers, i.e. an adhesive layer that is in direct contact with the skin of a living being, a barrier layer, and a collecting layer on the exterior face of the monitoring system. The equilibrium diffuser includes an adhesive layer and a collecting layer. The collecting layers and the adhesive layers of the two components of the monitoring system are preferably made of the same material and have the same dimensions.

Claims

1. A monitoring system for collecting and/or transdermally rediffusing air containing environmental contaminants, wherein said monitoring system is arranged flat on the skin of a living being and comprises at least one diffusion collector and at least one equilibrium diffuser.

2. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the diffusion collector comprises at least three layers (i) the layer directed toward the skin of a living being adhering to the skin, (ie) a barrier layer preventing diffusion of the environmental contaminants into the skin, and (iii) a collecting layer taking up the environmental contaminants, said layers arranged on the exterior face of the monitoring system.

3. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the equilibrium diffuser comprises at least two layers (i) a layer bearing on the skin of a living being and adhering to the skin, and (iii) a collecting layer taking up the environmental contaminants and permitting transdermal rediffusion, said layers located on the exterior face of the monitoring system.

4. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the collecting layer is comprised of at least one polymer material suitable for transdermal purposes.

5. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 4, wherein said polymer material further comprises porous, absorbent materials to increase the solubility and the absorption of organic environmental contaminants.

6. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the polymer material(s) is selected from silicone copolymers, polyisobutylene, acrylate copolymers, and/or styrene-isoprene copolymers.

7. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 5, wherein the porous, absorbent materials are selected from activated charcoal, bentonite, silicon dioxide, and/or synthesized polymers with specific affinities for certain organic trace elements.

8. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the adhesive layer contains silicone copolymers, polyacrylates, polyisobutylene or mixtures thereof.

9. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the barrier layer comprises pure metal, polyethylene terephthalate, acrylonitrile copolymer or polytetrafluoroethylene.

10. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the metal is aluminum, silver or gold.

11. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 2, wherein both the diffusion collector and also the equilibrium diffuser contain one or more additional layers as barrier layer(s) for certain environmental contaminants, and/or nonstick layers for textiles, plastics, or leather.

12. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the diffusion collector and the equilibrium diffuser each have collecting layers and adhesive layers of the same material.

13. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the collecting layers and the adhesive layers of the diffusion collector and the equilibrium diffuser each have the same dimensions.

14. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the adhesive layer has a thickness of 5 to 200 μ

m.

15. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the collecting layer has a thickness of 1 to 100 μ

m.

16. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the living being is a human or an animal.

22. The monitoring system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the adhesive layer has a thickness of 5 to 100 μ

m.

17. A method for collecting and monitoring the dermal uptake of environmental contaminants from the air, comprising:

applying to a first skin area an equilibrium diffuser comprising at least one polymer material which is suitable for transdermal purposes and optionally contains porous, absorbent materials for the uptake of environmental contaminants,

(b) applying to a second skin area a diffusion collector comprising a polymer material of the same type used in the equilibrium diffuser, the diffusion collector further comprising a barrier layer screening the environmental contaminants from the skin,

(c) exposing the equilibrium diffuser and diffusion collector to the ambient air for the same length of time and removing the same from the skin before the onset of the uptake saturation of the polymer materials for the environmental contaminants, and

(d) analytically determining the individual environmental contaminants.

18. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein, the analytically determining step further comprises extracting the environmental contaminants from the polymer materials using organic solvents, and comparing the solutions obtained with standard solutions by means of chromatography in order to determine the amounts of environmental contaminants taken up by the materials.

19. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein said analytically determining step further comprises placing each polymer material, after exposure, in a closed vessel that is heated in a headspace gas chromatograph, establishing a state of equilibrium between the environmental contaminants diffusing from the polymer materials into a gas space in the respective vessel and the environmental contaminants remaining in the material, and measuring the amounts of the environmental contaminants from the gaseous phase of the gas space.

20. The method as claimed in claim 19, wherein, the measured amounts and concentrations of the environmental contaminants in the polymer materials are compared, and an estimated value for the rate of dermal delivery of environmental contaminants to a living being is determined thereby.