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Concentration of metals in blood of Maine children 1–6 years old

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 20, pages 634–643 (2010)Cite this article

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Abstract

Blood lead concentrations are higher in young children than in other age groups, whereas little is known regarding concentrations of other metals in young children. We measured the concentrations of a suite of metals in the blood of children 1–6 years of age, and assessed potential differences by age, season, or region of Maine. We used blood submitted to the Maine State Health and Environmental Testing Laboratory for blood lead analysis to determine the concentrations of arsenic (As), antimony (Sb), cadmium (Cd), manganese (Mn), mercury (Hg), selenium (Se), tin (Sn), and uranium (U) in 1350 children 1–6 years of age. The essential metals Mn and Se were detected in all samples, and As and Sb were detected in >90% of samples. Hg was detected in approximately 60% of samples. U and Cd were less often detected in blood samples, at approximately 30% and 10% of samples, respectively. Sn was not detected in any sample. Concentrations of As, Hg, and Se increased with age, whereas Sb decreased with age. Concentrations also varied by season and region for some though not all metals. Significant pairwise correlations were observed for a number of metals. Blood is a reasonable compartment for measurement of most of these metals in young children. The use of convenience samples provided a cost-effective mechanism for assessing exposure of young children in Maine.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by a cooperative agreement (5U38EH000185) from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Environmental Public Health Tracking Branch. We thank the laboratory staff involved with the preparation of blood specimens for analysis and de-identification of samples (Frank Ricker, James Curlett).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health and Human Services, Environmental and Occupational Health Programs, Maine Center for Disease Control, Augusta, Maine, USA

    Deborah C Rice, Rebecca Lincoln, Shuqin Xing & Andrew E Smith

  2. Department of Health and Human Services, Health and Environmental Testing Laboratory, Maine Center for Disease Control, Augusta, Maine, USA

    John Martha & Kenneth Pote

  3. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Information Technology, Maine Center for Disease Control, Augusta, Maine, USA

    Lisa Parker

  4. Department of Applied and Medical Sciences, University of Southern Maine School of Applied Medical Sciences, Portland, Maine, USA

    Shuqin Xing

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  1. Deborah C Rice
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Correspondence to Deborah C Rice.

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Rice, D., Lincoln, R., Martha, J. et al. Concentration of metals in blood of Maine children 1–6 years old. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 20, 634–643 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/jes.2010.42

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