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Occupational styrene exposure and acquired dyschromatopsia: A systematic review and meta‐analysis
Author(s) -
Choi Ariel R.,
Braun Joseph M.,
Papandonatos George D.,
Greenberg Paul B.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.22766
Subject(s) - medicine , funnel plot , meta analysis , publication bias , styrene , toxicology , chemistry , organic chemistry , copolymer , biology , polymer
Background Styrene is a chemical used in the manufacture of plastic‐based products worldwide. We systematically reviewed eligible studies of occupational styrene‐induced dyschromatopsia, qualitatively synthesizing their findings and estimating the exposure effect through meta‐analysis. Methods PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science databases were queried for eligible studies. Using a random effects model, we compared measures of dyschromatopsia between exposed and non‐exposed workers to calculate the standardized mean difference (Hedges’ g ). We also assessed between‐study heterogeneity and publication bias. Results Styrene‐exposed subjects demonstrated poorer color vision than did the non‐exposed (Hedges’ g = 0.56; 95%CI: 0.37, 0.76; P < 0.0001). A non‐significant Cochran's Q test result ( Q = 23.2; P = 0.171) and an I 2 of 32.2% (0.0%, 69.9%) indicated low‐to‐moderate between‐study heterogeneity. Funnel plot and trim‐and‐fill analyses suggested publication bias. Conclusions This review confirms the hypothesis of occupational styrene‐induced dyschromatopsia, suggesting a modest effect size with mild heterogeneity between studies.