Association between heavy metal levels and acute ischemic stroke

Abstract

BackgroundFew studies have examined the relationship between the amounts of heavy metal and stroke incidence. The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between levels of heavy metals, including Pb, Hg, As, and Cd, in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS).MethodsWe selected patients with first-ever AIS onset within 1 week as our study group. Healthy controls were participants without a history of stroke or chronic disease, except hypertension. The serum levels of Pb, Hg, As, and Cd in participants in the experimental and control groups were determined. All participants received a 1-g infusion of edetate calcium disodium (EDTA). Urine specimens were collected for 24 h after EDTA infusion and measured for heavy metal levels.ResultsIn total, 33 patients with AIS and 39 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. The major findings were as follows: (1) The stroke group had a significantly lower level of serum Hg (6.4 ± 4.3 μg/L vs. 9.8 ± 7.0 μg/L, P = 0.032, OR = 0.90, 95% CI = 0.81–0.99) and a lower level of urine Hg (0.7 ± 0.7 μg/L vs. 1.2 ± 0.6 μg/L, P = 0.006, OR = 0.27, 95% CI = 0.11–0.68) than the control group. (2) No significant difference in serum Pb (S-Pb), As (S-As), and Cd (S-Cd) levels and urine Pb (U-Pb), As (U-As) and Cd (U-Cd) levels was observed in either group.ConclusionsOur study found low levels of serum and urine Hg in first-ever patients with AIS, providing new evidence of dysregulated heavy metals in patients with AIS.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12929-018-0446-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Association between blood lead level and risk of stroke in Korean adults: a cross-sectional study in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2008–2013

“…64 A case-control study showed a non-significant association between serum lead and acute ischaemic stroke (OR: 0.97, 95% CI: 0.91-1.02). 65 In present study, we found that blood lead was not associated with stroke.…”

Association between Heavy Metals and Rare Earth Elements with Acute Ischemic Stroke: A Case-Control Study Conducted in the Canary Islands (Spain)

“…Previous publications have observed that the levels of certain inorganic elements are higher in the control group than among stroke patients [39]. This is the case of barium in the present study (Table 2).…”

“…The association of ischemic stroke and lead has been shown in other studies [41,43]. However, other studies did not report any association between lead-or arsenic-and stroke [39]. Reference values (RV95s) for arsenic and lead are 2.0 and 33 ng/mL, respectively, for adult population [44].…”

“…From this it follows that both elements can be considered independent factors associated with stroke, something plausible given the capacity of these substances to cross the blood-brain barrier and, therefore, exert an effect on brain tissue [18]. The role that inorganic elements have in relation to stroke has been studied, above all, in relation to heavy metals and major metalloids, with disparate and, sometimes, contradictory results [39]. It has to be taken into account that some toxic elements have been associated to well-known risk factors for stroke, establishing an indirect association with the disease.…”

Removal of Pb2+ and Cd2+ From Contaminated Water Using Activated Carbon from Canola Seed Wastes

“…Among these contaminants, toxic metals have more severity because they do not have metabolic functions known in living organisms. Toxic metals such as Pb 2+ and Cd 2+ can accumulate and bioaccumulate in living tissues resulting in anomalies, disorders and cancers [1].…”