EVALUATION OF MUTAGENICITY RISK AMONG NURSES EXPOSED TO CYTOS TATIC IN A UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL IN EASTERN OF ALGERIA

Aims : The aim of this study is to assess the mutagenicity effect of occupational exposure to cytostatc in order to propose an environmental medical prevention program. Materials and Methods : A cross - sectional descriptive study was conducted for three months, it involved 39 nurs es exposed to cytostatic drugs in oncology and 43 referents. They were matched by age, sex, smoking, seniority .The data were collected using a medical questionnaire. Mutagenicity was evaluated by the Ames test. The calculation of the ICC has allowed the c lassification of exposure. Results: T he average age of exposed subjects is 42.28 ± 9.90 years with female predominance. 75% of staff is classified exposure level 3 and 2. Among the contact with cytostatic drugs is associated with a risk of mutagenic 3 (RR = 3.28, 95% CI: 1.73, 6, 22) with a highly significant difference (P 0 .0001). 60% of samples of exposed and 15% of referents were positive, the mean number of positive revertants was 527.94 with a good correlation between the number of revertants and t he ICC. Conclusion : This study confirms mutagenic risk among nurses handling cytostatic without adequate safeguards. It encourages the alignment on best practices to improve working conditions in oncology structures.