A survey of blood lead levels among young Johannesburg school children

Mathee, Angela; Schirnding, Y. E. R. Von; Levin, Jonathan; Ismail, Ahmed; Huntley, Renee M.; Cantrell, Amy

doi:10.1016/s0013-9351(02)00010-5

Cited by 51 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…[13] The present study showed that, after adjusting for confounding factors, being male was not a significant risk factor, although the mean BLL was 0.63 µg/dl higher in males than in females. In other resource-poor countries, such as Uganda and India, no association was found between sex and BLLs.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 38%

“…These were the same towns and schools included in previous such studies. [1,5,13] Cape Town, the largest coastal city in Western Cape Province, covers ~2 400 km 2 with a population of ~3.4 million in 2007. Johannesburg, in Gauteng Province, covers ~2 300 km 2 with a population of 3.8 million; it is one of the fastest growing cities in the world.…”

Section: Study Populationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A follow-up cross-sectional study of environmental lead exposure in early childhood in urban South Africa

2013

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Background. Lead exposure has significant detrimental effects on the health and wellbeing of children. In resource-poor countries, information on the extent of lead exposure is often inadequate owing to the lack of surveillance and screening programmes. Objective. To determine the degree of lead exposure in children residing in South African urban areas. Methods. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in schools in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Kimberley in 2007 -2008. Blood lead levels were assessed in a total of 1 349 grade 1 children using the LeadCare Analyser system. Parents completed a structured questionnaire on sociodemographic profiles and risk factors to provide information about socioeconomic status and other risk factors for lead exposure.Results. Blood lead levels ranged from 0.8 -32.3 µg/dl. The mean blood lead level in the total sample was 7.97 µg/dl; 74% had blood lead levels ≥5 µg/dl. The highest proportion (84%) of children with blood lead levels ≥5 µg/dl was in Johannesburg. In the multivariate analysis, socioeconomic status was significantly associated with blood lead levels ≥5 µg/dl. Conclusion. Lead exposure in South African urban areas remains widespread. The risk of lead poisoning in some areas and certain groups of children may be increasing despite the phasing out of lead-containing petrol. Children living in poverty continue to be the most vulnerable.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 38%

Section: Study Populationmentioning

confidence: 99%

A follow-up cross-sectional study of environmental lead exposure in early childhood in urban South Africa

2013

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“…The environmental and social context in which Riverlea children are born, live and educated indicate serious concerns for their physical, mental and social health, and are illustrative of many settings of urban or rural poverty in South Africa, where children may face, simultaneously, multiple environmental hazards to their health. Source of information: (Mathee et al, 2002;Mathee et al, 2009a;Plagerson & Mathee, 2012;Mendes et al, 2011;Kootbodien et al, 2012;Jassat et al, 2013) Children experience multiple pesticide exposure scenarios in both urban and rural settings (for example, playing in sprayed fields, applying pesticides, applications of lice shampoos and scabies treatments, petting dipped animals, eating and drinking street pesticides), along with accumulating pesticide exposures from sources such as breast milk, soil, food and water (Rother, 2001). Yet there is a prevailing assumption that pesticide exposures predominantly occur in agricultural areas, resulting in under-reporting and misdiagnosis of cases, particularly from street pesticides (Balme et al, 2010;Rother, 2010).…”

Section: Children's Environmental Health: the Disregarded Agendamentioning

confidence: 99%

Development for children's environmental health in South Africa: Past gains and future opportunities

Mathee

Barnes

Naidoo

et al. 2018

Development Southern Africa

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“…The instrument was programmed to determine Cd by use of the 114 Cd + ion with automatic mass correction caused by the 114 Sn + ionic interference. Since the Mo concentration in whole blood is around 1 ng mL À1 or lower, any mass interference at 114 Cd + from the 98 Mo 16 O + was not considered to contribute to the overall signal. The following mass resolutions were used; low for Cd, Hg, Pb; medium for Mn, Cu, Zn; and high for As and Se.…”

Section: Instrumental Measurementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toxic and essential elements in blood from delivering women in selected areas of São Paulo State, Brazil

et al. 2011

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This study was designed to evaluate the degree of environmental contamination and possible exposure of pregnant women to toxic elements in seven selected areas of São Paulo State, Brazil. The overall median concentration of Mo in maternal blood was 0.53 mg L À1 , highly significant differences found between sites (p < 0.0001). Cd was found to be low overall À 0.09 mg L À1 (0.01-0.58 mg L À1 ) -with mothers from the Coastal and Rural 1 sites having the highest levels (p < 0.016). Median Hg concentration was 0.60 mg L À1 (0.06 mg L À1 -4.35 mg L À1 ); median Pb level was 16.2 mg L À1 (3.5-57.7 mg L À1 ) and no differences between sites were observed for both metals. Median Mn level was 16.7 mg L À1 (7.0-39.7 mg L À1 ), being highest in Urban 2 site (p<0.016). Concentrations of maternal Co were found to range between 0.06 mg L À1 and 1.1 mg L À1 (median 0.25 mg L À1 ) and As level was 0.60 mg L À1 (0.10-3.8 mg L À1 ) overall, with no statistical significance between sites for Co and As. Median Se concentrations were found to be 64 mg L À1 (36-233 mg L À1 ), with the highest median levels found in Urban 3 site; site differences were statistically significant (p < 0.0001). Correlation for each element (between paired maternal and cord blood) was measured only in Rural site 1; significant correlation was shown for Hg, Pb, Mn and Co (p<0.05). These findings may be interpreted as indicating low environmental contamination in São Paulo State, Brazil. These findings could also indicate that pregnant women have little or no contact with pollutants, possibly due to awareness campaigns carried out by public health practitioners.

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A survey of blood lead levels among young Johannesburg school children

Cited by 51 publications

References 5 publications

A follow-up cross-sectional study of environmental lead exposure in early childhood in urban South Africa

A follow-up cross-sectional study of environmental lead exposure in early childhood in urban South Africa

Development for children's environmental health in South Africa: Past gains and future opportunities

Toxic and essential elements in blood from delivering women in selected areas of São Paulo State, Brazil

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