Program in Molecular Epidemiology, Division of Environmental Health Sciences, Columbia School of Public Health, 60 Haven Avenue, B-1, New York, NY 100324206, USA
It has recently come to our attention that there are several errors requiring correction in the above article, as follows. First we would like to point out several typographical errors. `Table I' in line 6 on page 347 should be `Table II'. Also, in Table II (page 348) the columns were inadvertently shifted during production of the article. Correlations, sample sizes and P-values in the CPACKY column in the old Table I should be moved to the CIGDAY column; the CIGDAY column should be moved to the SBEERW column; the SBEERW column should be moved to the QUET column; the QUET column should be moved to the MULTV column and the MULTV column should be moved to the CPACKY column.
In addition, we have become aware that the assay of urinary 1-hydroxypyrene, conducted in the laboratory of one of our collaborators, had been modified during the course of the study. The measurements of the original assay (on samples from the first 2 years) are therefore not comparable to the measurements based on the modified assay (on samples from the last 2 years of the study). It is neither possible or appropriate, statistically or numerically, to convert the modified measures back to original measures or vice versa. Therefore, the reported statistical results and conclusions related to urinary 1-hydroxypyrene are not accurate. Analyzing the results from the first two years and those from the second two years separately, log transformed urinary 1-hydroxypyrene levels are no longer significantly correlated with the level of benzo[a]pyrene in the workplace, or with the number of hours worked per week, the number of packs of cigarettes smoked per year and number of servings of hard liquor per week (Table II). The lack of significant results is partially due to reduced sample size and partially due to the lack of a significant change in production (and related B[a]P concentrations) in the foundry between 1990 and 1991 and between 1992 and 1993. All other results reported in the article are correct and have been replicated.