Human health risk assessment of pharmaceuticals in the European Vecht River
Daniel J. Duarte, Rik Oldenkamp, Ad M.J. Ragas
Abstract
Abstract Active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) can reach surface waters used for drinking water extraction and recreational activities, such as swimming and fishing. The aim of the present study was to systematically assess the lifetime human health risks posed by 15 individual APIs and their mixtures occurring in the German–Dutch transboundary Vecht River. An exposure model was developed and used to assess the combined risks of oral and dermal exposure under a variety of exposure conditions. A total of 4500 API uptake values and 165 lifetime risk values were estimated for 15 and 11 APIs, respectively. Overall, the lifetime human health risks posed by the APIs and their mixtures based on modeling results were deemed acceptable under typical exposure conditions. Under very extreme environmental conditions and human behavior, API mixture risks were of potential concern while the risks of individual APIs were negligible, with a few exceptions. The antibiotic doxycycline and analgesic phenazone showed the highest and lowest risks, respectively. The study did not evaluate the potential risks caused by metabolite compounds. Recommendations for water managers are provided to help improve the accuracy and utility of human health risk assessments of pharmaceuticals. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2022;18:1639–1654. © 2022 The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC). KEY POINTS Human health risks from direct toxicity associated with the lifetime exposure to pharmaceutical residues in the Vecht's River catchment were predominantly below safe limits. Doxycycline and diclofenac pose the highest risk yet are below the risk threshold under normal environmental conditions for most individuals. Human features and behavior combined with environmental conditions of varied complexity can be integrated into a relatively simple deterministic exposure model to estimate lifetime health risks of pharmaceuticals in the water environment. Local, regional, and national authorities can readily gain insight into the potential human health risks based on minimal information, bypassing unnecessary and laborious risk assessment.