Assessment of Child Lead Exposure in a Philadelphia Community, 2014

Dignam, Timothy; Pomales, Ana; Werner, Lora; Newbern, E. Claire; Hodge, James G.; Nielsen, J; Grober, Aaron; Scruton, Karen; Young, Rand; Kelly, Jack; Brown, Mary Jean

doi:10.1097/phh.0000000000000711

Cited by 17 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…The proportion of Pueblo children with reportable BLL was more than two times higher when children lived near the main old smelter versus away (13.9% vs. 6.4%), further stressing the public health risks associated with these industrial activities. Our results are consistent with a recent report that 12.4% of 104 children tested in a Philadelphia community, with a history of lead-emitting industrial activities, had reportable BLLs or higher [ 47 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Smelting Remains a Public Health Risk Nearly a Century Later: A Case Study in Pueblo, Colorado, USA

Diawara

Shrestha

Carsella

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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Pueblo, Colorado has a long history of smelting activities, and recent studies raised concerns about lead exposure. This study tested 240 children in Pueblo for blood lead levels (BLLs) and found a significant association between distance from old smelters and children BLLs. Around 7.5% of Pueblo children had BLLs above the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reference level of 5 µg/dL for elevated BLL, and 18.3% had BLLs between 3.3–4.9 µg/dL. Out of the 36 children who lived near former smelters, 13.9% had BLLs above 5 µg/dL vs. 6.37% for children living away from old smelters. The proportion of Pueblo children with elevated BLL was nearly three times the 2007–2010 United States national average (7.5% vs. 2.6%), and this was higher in the immediate vicinity of old smelters (13.9% vs. 2.6%). Genetic polymorphisms for ALAD-1 or ALAD-2 alleles, which play a role in susceptibility to lead toxicity, were not associated with children BBLs. Around 38.5% of houses sampled near the smelters had topsoil lead levels higher than the Environmental Protection Agency’s benchmark of 400 mg/kg. Our study resulted in the addition of areas of Pueblo to the EPA Superfund National Priorities List in December 2014, and cleanup is currently underway to minimize the public health risks.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Smelting Remains a Public Health Risk Nearly a Century Later: A Case Study in Pueblo, Colorado, USA

Diawara

Shrestha

Carsella

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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“…However, we performed a road dust and soil investigation, which identified legacy Pb paint and leaded gasoline as the main contributors to Pb pollution in the city (e.g., [26]). Another study in Philadelphia found that higher childhood EBLL were strongly related to Pb content in entryway floor dust [63]. Overall, the authors were not able to directly identify a single point source related to childhood EBLL.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Lead Pollution, Demographics, and Environmental Health Risks: The Case of Philadelphia, USA

O’Shea

Toupal

Caballero-Gómez

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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Lead (Pb) soil contamination in urban environments represents a considerable health risk for exposed populations, which often include environmental justice communities. In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (PA), Pb pollution is a major concern primarily due to extensive historical Pb-smelting/processing activity and legacy use of Pb-based paints and leaded gasoline. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) organized and/or compiled community-driven soil sampling campaigns to investigate Pb content in surface soils across Philadelphia. Using these data (n = 1277), combined with our own dataset (n = 1388), we explored the spatial distribution of Pb content in soils across the city using ArcGIS. While assessing Zone Improvement Plan (ZIP)-code level data, we found strong correlations between factors, such as the percentage of children with elevated blood lead levels (% EBLL) and % minority population as well as between % EBLL and % children in poverty. We developed a “Lead Index” that took demographics, median measured Pb-in-soil content, and % EBLLs into account to identify ZIP codes in need of further assessment. Our results will be used to help lower the Pb-exposure risk for vulnerable children living in disproportionately burdened communities.

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“…[64]). Living near a mine and spoil or a metal-emitting industry put people at risk of exposure to PM and associated metals ('neighbourhood exposure') [35]. Elderly people exposed to mining waste, which is often open to being spread widely by wind and rain, suffer a disproportionate burden of lung diseases [78•].…”

Section: Environmental Determinantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Metalliferous Mine Dust: Human Health Impacts and the Potential Determinants of Disease in Mining Communities

et al. 2019

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Purpose of Review Many factors influence the health impact of exposure to metalliferous mine dusts and whilst the underpinning toxicology is pivotal, it is not the only driver of health outcomes following exposure. The purpose of this review is twofold: (i) to highlight recent advances in our understanding of the hazard posed by metalliferous mine dust and (ii) to broaden an often narrowly framed health risk perspective to consider the wider aetiology of the potential determinants of disease. Recent Findings The hazard posed by metalliferous dusts depends not only on their abundance and particle size but other properties such as chemical composition, solubility, shape, and surface area, which all play a role in the associated health effects. A better understanding of the mechanisms that lead to toxicity, such as recent advances in our understanding of the role played by reactive oxygen species (ROS), can help in the development of improved in vitro models to support risk assessments, whilst biomonitoring studies have the potential to guide risk management decisions for mining communities. Summary Environmental exposures are complex; complex geochemically and complex geographically. Research linking the environment to human health is starting to mature, highlighting the subtlety of multiple exposures, mixtures of substances, and the cumulative legacy effects of life in disrupted and stressed environments. We are evolving more refined biomarkers to identify these responses, which enhances our appreciation of the burden of effects on society and also directs us to more sophisticated risk assessment approaches to adequately address evolving regulatory and societal needs.

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Assessment of Child Lead Exposure in a Philadelphia Community, 2014

Cited by 17 publications

References 13 publications

Smelting Remains a Public Health Risk Nearly a Century Later: A Case Study in Pueblo, Colorado, USA

Smelting Remains a Public Health Risk Nearly a Century Later: A Case Study in Pueblo, Colorado, USA

Lead Pollution, Demographics, and Environmental Health Risks: The Case of Philadelphia, USA

Metalliferous Mine Dust: Human Health Impacts and the Potential Determinants of Disease in Mining Communities

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