Clinical trial NCT05819996: Addressing Tetrachloroethylene Exposure in an Impacted Community
Official title: Addressing Tetrachloroethylene Exposure in an Impacted Community: Residents' Concerns, Neurotoxic Effects, and Exposure Reduction
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: RECRUITING
Phase: NA
Conditions: Vapors; Inhalation
Cancer
Volatile Organic Compounds
Keywords: Tetrachloroethylene
Trichloroethylene
PCE
TCE
Community environmental contamination
Chlorinated volatile organic compounds
Lead sponsor: Purdue University
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: University of Illinois at Chicago
name: Indiana University School of Medicine
name: Mackey Children's Cancer Foundation
First posted: 2023-04-19
Enrollment: 510
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 99
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: NA
Intervention model: SINGLE_GROUP
Intervention model description: An educational campaign targeting the community
Primary purpose: OTHER

Brief summary: Groundwater in Martinsville, IN, is contaminated by volatile organic compounds (VOCs), tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and trichloroethylene (TCE). Indoor air in some residential and commercial buildings is also contaminated with PCE and TCE. This study is being conducted to better understand the impact of low-level exposures to these compounds on community members' health. Data collected in this study will be used to help the community identify a course of action.

Detailed description: Martinsville, IN, is a community of 11,000 people that overlays four groundwater contamination sites, including a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-designated Superfund site. The total area of groundwater contamination is over 60 acres and lies within a single aquifer. The contaminates are chlorinated volatile organic compounds (VOCs), primarily tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and trichloroethylene (TCE). These contaminants are thought to originate from several dry cleaning and metal degreasing operations. An activated carbon filtration system has been in operation since 2005 to remove PCE and chlorinated VOCs from the municipal water, which now meets EPA drinking water standards. However, a recent report from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry concludes that people's health may be harmed by breathing indoor air contaminated via vapor intrusion, the migration of volatile compounds from contaminated groundwater and soil into buildings above. The long-term goal of this research is to understand how PCE exposure in communities affects health and to empower community members' participation in environmental health decision-making. In this project researchers will work with the community of Martinsville, IN to:

1. Determine the extent and exposure levels to the contaminants by measuring the contamination in residents and at their homes.
2. Assess the community's concern and perceptions about the contamination and associated health risks.
3. Study the impact of the contaminants on visual and neurocognitive functions.
4. Compare cancer rates in Martinsville to county and state rates.

The above information will help researchers and community partners co-design a targeted educational campaign to reduce community members' exposure to the contaminants.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Residents of Martinsville, Indiana
* 18 years or older

Primary outcomes:
measure: Change in concerns about environmental chemical contamination in Martinsville.
timeFrame: For Measure 1a, Time frame is from year 1 to year 3; for Measure 1b, Time frame is from year 1 to year 5.
measure: Changes in awareness of possible exposure to chemicals from soil or groundwater in Martinsville.
timeFrame: For Measure 2a, Time frame is from year 1 to year 3; for Measure 2b, Time frame is from year 1 to year 5.
measure: Change in willingness to have respondent's homes tested for chemical contamination from contaminated soil or groundwater.
timeFrame: For Measure 3a, Time frame is from year 1 to year 3; for Measure 3b, Time frame is from year 1 to year 5.
Secondary outcomes:
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: West Lafayette
country: United States
facility: Purdue University
state: Indiana
Study officials:
affiliation: Purdue University
name: Sa Liu, MPH, PhD
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: