DEHBio - Biomonitoring and PFAS Health Studies

Launched April 2021

Not currently enrolling participants.

The PFOMS Report and Brief are now available!

The PFOMS (pronounced: p-foams) project is a statewide biomonitoring project focused on Michigan firefighters. The primary purpose of the project is to determine firefighters' average exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The findings of the project will help inform decisions about how to minimize firefighters' exposure to PFAS.

Launched 2026

Now enrolling new participants by invitation only.

The goal of MiPEHS BHS is to learn if PFAS might impact brain health and behavior.

Launched 2026

Currently enrolling participants. 

Michigan Investigation of Chemical Exposures during Pregnancy (MICEP) is a project that measures lead, mercury, arsenic and poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the blood and urine of adults from select areas of the state that are pregnant. This project aims to determine whether amounts of these chemicals are different during pregnancy compared to the Michigan population.

Launched 2024

No longer enrolling new participants.

The Environmental Mediators of Birth-defects and Relation to Contaminants (EMBARC) study launched in 2024. The goal of EMBARC is to learn if PFAS might be linked to certain birth defects.

Launched 2020

Not currently enrolling participants.

The Michigan PFAS Exposure and Health Study, or MiPEHS (pronounced: my-pez), is a multiple year study to research exposures to PFAS and impacts on health in the City of Parchment and Cooper Township in Kalamazoo County and the Rockford/Belmont Area in Kent County.

The team is analyzing the data and will post reports as they are available. Stay tuned!

Launched 2023

Not currently enrolling participants.

This study is designed to understand certain characteristics of health and behavior, and how those may be related to learning about blood or water test results or other environmental chemicals.

Launched 2022

Not currently recruiting.

MiChEM (pronounced: my-chem) is a statewide biomonitoring program focused on a representative sample of Michigan adults. MDHHS will look at the blood and urine of these adults for certain chemicals. The program aims to find the statewide average level of exposure to these chemicals.

Launched September 2022

Not currently enrolling participants.

The OAEA is carried out as one part of the Michigan biomonitoring surveillance program named the Michigan Chemical Exposure Monitoring project, or MiChEM. To learn more about MiChEM, visit our MiChEM page.

OAEA is an exposure assessment to understand exposure to environmental chemicals, including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), among residents of the Oscoda area. MDHHS will test blood from both adolescent and adult participants for PFAS. Adults (18 and older) can have their blood and urine tested for additional environmental chemicals. The project will measure the Oscoda area population’s exposure to environmental chemicals and compare the findings to statewide average levels of exposure as measured by the MiChEM project and national average levels of exposure as measured by the CDC.

Launched 2021

Not currently enrolling participants.

The Multi-Site Study (MSS) is a study coordinated by the Center for Disease Control's Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) in partnership with MDHHS. It is happening in seven communities across the U.S., including the same Michigan communities as MiPEHS.

The Birth Outcomes Supplemental Study (BOSS) is a special addition to the Multi-site Health Study that only Michigan is doing. BOSS is designed to answer how PFAS exposure relates to a mother and baby’s health during birth. Learn more about BOSS

Launched April 2021

Not currently enrolling participants.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) is doing a research study to see if per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure affects how the immune system responds to COVID-19 vaccines, including antibody production.

Launched 2018

Not currently enrolling participants.

The North Kent County Exposure Assessment Report 2 is now available!

Learn about the North Kent County Exposure Assessment Report 2.

The North Kent County Exposure Assessment is a regional effort that studied the relationship between drinking water with PFAS and the amount in the human body. The research study involves collecting blood samples from people in the northern Kent County area whose drinking water wells were found to have PFAS. 

1976-2009

Not currently enrolling participants.

Emory University Poly-Brominated Biphenyls (PBB) Study
Ongoing

Currently enrolling participants.

The MDHHS Michigan Long-Term Poly-Brominated Biphenyls (PBB) Study sought to identify long term health impacts associated with PBB exposure in thousands of Michiganders following an accidental release of the chemical into the food supply in the early 1970s. Although enrollment in the MDHHS study ended in 2004, MDHHS continued to update the study's databases until 2009. Currently, Emory University is carrying on similar PBB research and their study is open to enrollment.