His 'n' Hers Health Effects
It is well known that men and women experience different health effects, but why this is so is still somewhat of a mystery. The NIEHS News article (p. A270) describes some of the findings of the report of a recent Institute of Medicine workshop that focused on the issue of gender-related susceptibility to environmental agents.
The Science of Sprawl
The road to urban sprawl is paved with good intentions; in the end, however, sprawl may contribute to a range of environmental and health consequences. The Focus article (p. A274) looks at the causes of urban sprawl, the rate at which it is occurring, how it may affect health and the environment, and what stakeholders are doing to ensure that expansion equals progress.
Unexamined Risk?
In a world rife with both old and new diseases and steadily more drug-resistant germs, the issue of determining the extent of the threat has become paramount. The Spheres of Influence article (p. A280) examines the state-of-the-science for determining risk from exposure to biological agents including modeling and comparisons based on chemical risk assessment guidelines.
Cultural Benefits
The Innovations article (p. A284) describes the development of a method to grow large-scale cultures of dinoflagellates, allowing researchers to better study the elusive source of some of medicine's most promising new treatments.
Risk to Children from Indoor Application of Chlorpyrifos
Davis and Ahmed (p. 299) comment that exposures from indoor spraying of chlorpyrifos pose greater health risks to children than currently estimated. The authors suggest it would be prudent to explore insect control options other than pesticide application.
Risk from Indoor Chlorpyrifos Use
A commentary by Gibson et al. (p. 303) suggests that human toxicity, exposure and risk from recommended uses of chlorpyrifos are inconsequential unless instructions for safe application of the pesticide are ignored.
Pollution and Child Health in Europe
Fitzgerald et al. (p. 307) report in a commentary that the greatest threats to children's health in Central and Eastern Europe are heavy metals and air pollution. Scientific studies, training of health professionals, and public education backed by policy decisions are required to evaluate the extent of pollution and attendant health risks to children.
Lead Poisoning in a 4-Month-Old Infant
During Grand Rounds at the Boston Children's Hospital, Shannon (p. 313) reported a case in which a baby presented with a venous blood lead level of 46 µg/dl. Exposure occurred due to infant formula preparation in a lead-contaminated urn. Hospitalization and chelation therapy reduced blood lead to 8 µg/dl after 9 months treatment, but mild to moderate speech delay subsequently occurred.
Cancer Risk from PCBs
In a review of cancer risk assessment for PCBs, Cogliano (p. 317) considers both toxicity and environmental processes to distinguish between commercial mixtures of PCBs and environmentally modified PCB products. Guidance is provided for applying risk assessment to different exposure pathways, less-than-lifetime and early-life exposures, and mixtures containing dioxinlike compounds.
Air Pollution and Intrauterine Mortality in Brazil
The association between daily counts of intrauterine mortality and air pollutant concentrations (NO2, SO2, CO, O3, and PM10) in São Paulo were studied by Pereira et al. (p. 325). The association was stronger for NO2 than for SO2 and CO, while a robust association between intrauterine mortality and air pollution was observed when the three pollutants were combined in the model. An association between carboxyhemoglobin and CO in umbilical cord blood suggested that air pollution promoted adverse health effects in fetuses.
Air Pollution and Children's Health in Taiwan
Chen et al. (p. 331) assessed 5,072 children's respiratory symptoms and diseases in a rural area, two urban areas, and three petrochemical industrial areas using a parent questionnaire. Children from urban areas had more respiratory symptoms and diseases compared to those from the rural area, but only nasal symptoms of children from the petrochemical areas were more prevalent than those from the rural area. Home dampness was the most significant factor in relation to children's respiratory health.
Temperature and Dermal Exposure to Chloroform
New methodology for continuous measurements of volatile organic compounds was developed by Gordon et al. (p. 337) using a glow discharge ionization source coupled with an ion trap tandem mass spectrometer. The instrument was used in human studies of dermal exposure to chloroform in water, showing that the pharmacokinetics of uptake and elimination were stongly dependent upon temperature.
Pesticide Exposure to Children in Mexico
A rapid assessment tool for preschool children was developed by Guillette et al. (p. 347) to measure growth and development. Children of an agrarian region known to have been exposed to pesticides demonstrated decreases in stamina, gross and fine eye-hand coordination, 30 minute memory, and the ability to draw a person.
Arsenic Metabolism in Children from Argentina
Concha et al. (p. 355) compared the metabolites of inorganic arsenic in children from villages with arsenic in the drinking water at 0.65 µg/l and 200 µg/l. Arsenic in blood and urine, averaging 9 and 380 µg/l, are the highest ever recorded for children in the general population. The data indicate that the inorganic form of arsenic was the main one ingested and that children are more sensitive to arsenic induced toxicity than adults.
Lead Poisoning in Yugoslavian Children
The relationship between erythropoietin and lead poisoning in nonanemic children was investigated by Factor-Litvak et al. (p. 361). Blood lead gradually declined from 38.9 µg/dl at 4.5 years of age to 28.2 µg/dl at 9.5 years of age. There was a positive association between blood lead and erythropoietin in 4.5-year-olds, which continued to decline during aging. In lead-exposed children normal hemoglobin maintenance may require hyperproduction of erythropoietin.
Last Updated: June 3, 1998
