In Vivo Percutaneous Absorption of [14C]DEHP from [14C]DEHP-Plasticized Polyvinyl Chloride Film in Male Fischer 344 Rats

These studies investigated the migration of di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) contained as a plasticizer in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) from plastic film and its absorption through rat skin in vivo. Sheets of PVC film (15 cm2) plasticized with [14C]DEHP were applied to the shaved backs of eight male rats in two separate experiments. For Study I, the PVC film was removed after 24 hr, the animals were rewrapped to prevent them from ingesting any residual DEHP at the exposure site, and urine and faeces were collected at regular intervals for 7 days. For Study II, the PVC film was removed after 24 hr, and the animals were immediately killed by CO2 inhalation. Urine and faeces were collected at 24 hr, and the exposure site was washed and rinsed to remove residual [14C]DEHP. In both studies, the amounts of radioactivity transferred from the film were extremely small, amounting to 0.0643% (Study I) and 0.126% (Study II) of that applied. The transferred radioactivity was found to be in three separate fractions. Radioactivity readily removed from the skin (mean 75% of the transferred radioactivity), radioactivity remaining at the application site at sacrifice, and absorbed radioactivity, that is, that distributed systemically or eliminated. The mean absorption rates for DEHP, calculated from the sum of the quantities absorbed plus that present in the exposure site, were: Study I, 0.239, and Study II, 0.242 μg/cm2/hr.