This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow P3Rs: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when P3Rs are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (25)
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Bernard, S. M.
Right arrow Articles by McGeehin, M. A.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Bernard, S. M.
Right arrow Articles by McGeehin, M. A.
Related Collections
Right arrow Therapeutics & Toxicology
PEDIATRICS Vol. 112 No. 6 December 2003, pp. 1308-1313

Prevalence of Blood Lead Levels ≥5 µg/dL Among US Children 1 to 5 Years of Age and Socioeconomic and Demographic Factors Associated With Blood of Lead Levels 5 to 10 µg/dL, Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988–1994

Susan M. Bernard, JD, DrPH, MPH* and Michael A. McGeehin, PhD, MSPH{ddagger}

* Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Baltimore, Maryland
{ddagger} Division of Environmental Hazards and Health Effects, National Center for Environmental Health, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

Objectives. As part of an investigation into the impact of a potential revision in federal childhood lead poisoning prevention policy that would result in screening children for blood lead levels (BLLs) ≥5 µg/dL rather than the current 10 µg/dL, we analyzed the most recent available, nationally representative data to identify prevalence of BLLs ≥5 µg/dL and socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of 1- to 5-year-old children with BLLs ≥5 but <10 µg/dL.

Methods. We performed statistical analyses on data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) (1988–1994) to describe trends in BLLs ≥5 µg/dL overall and among subpopulations of children <6 years old and to compare risk factors for falling within 1 of 3 groups of children (those with BLLs ≥5 but <10 µg/dL; ≥10 but <20 µg/dL; and ≥20 µg/dL) using the group reported as 0.7 to <5 µg/dL as the referent.

Results. Overall prevalence of BLLs ≥5 µg/dL among 1- to 5-year-old children was 25.6%, although most (76%) of these children had BLLs <10 µg/dL. Children with BLLs ≥5 µg/dL included 46.8% of non-Hispanic black children, 27.9% of Mexican American children, and 18.7% of non-Hispanic white children; 42.5% of children in housing built before 1946, 38.9% of children in housing built between 1946 and 1973, and 14.1% of children in housing built after 1973 had BLLs ≥5 µg/dL. Compared with non-Hispanic white children, non-Hispanic black children were 3 times more likely to have a BLL ≥5 but <10 µg/dL, 7 times more likely to have a BLL of 10–20 µg/dL, and 13.5 times more likely to have a BLL ≥20 µg/dL. Similar increases in the association between risk factor and BLL were seen with respect to other known risk factors including age of housing, region of the country, and poverty.

Conclusions. The high prevalence of BLLs ≥5 µg/dL overall and within US subpopulations will be an important variable in any change in screening and intervention criteria. However, most children with BLLs ≥5 µg/dL are below the current intervention level of 10 µg/dL. Exposure to lead from multiple sources is suggested by the prevalence of BLLs ≥5 µg/dL but <10 µg/dL among children with uncertain risk factors. The probable presence of one or more known risk factors for childhood lead poisoning increases as BLL increases.

Key Words: lead • child • prevalence • environment • NHANES III

Abbreviations: BLL, blood lead level • NHANES, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey • CDC, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention • CI, confidence interval • PIR, poverty income ratio • OR, odds ratio

Received for publication Oct 9, 2002; Accepted Apr 25, 2003.




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Am. J. Public HealthHome page
P. Tehranifar, J. Leighton, A. H. Auchincloss, A. Faciano, H. Alper, A. Paykin, and S. Wu
Immigration and Risk of Childhood Lead Poisoning: Findings From a Case-Control Study of New York City Children
Am J Public Health, January 1, 2008; 98(1): 92 - 97.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Journal of Black PsychologyHome page
S. Joe
Explaining Changes in the Patterns of Black Suicide in the United States From 1981 to 2002: An Age, Cohort, and Period Analysis
Journal of Black Psychology, August 1, 2006; 32(3): 262 - 284.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Nutr.Home page
S.-Y. Lim, J. D. Doherty, K. McBride, N. J. Miller-Ihli, G. N. Carmona, K. D. Stark, and N. Salem Jr
Lead Exposure and (n-3) Fatty Acid Deficiency during Rat Neonatal Development Affect Subsequent Spatial Task Performance and Olfactory Discrimination
J. Nutr., May 1, 2005; 135(5): 1019 - 1026.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Nutr.Home page
S.-Y. Lim, J. D. Doherty, and N. Salem Jr
Lead Exposure and (n-3) Fatty Acid Deficiency during Rat Neonatal Development Alter Liver, Plasma, and Brain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Composition
J. Nutr., May 1, 2005; 135(5): 1027 - 1033.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]