Urinary beta 2-microglobulin concentration and mortality in a cadmium-polluted area.
A 9-y follow-up study of 3,178 persons who lived in a cadmium-polluted area was conducted to assess the influence of environmental cadmium exposure on long-term outcome. The standardized mortality ratios of the urinary beta 2-microglobulin-positive subjects (> 1,000 micrograms/g creatinine) of both sexes were higher than those of the general Japanese population, whereas the cumulative survival curves were lower than those of the urinary beta 2-microglobulin-negative group. A significant association was also found between urinary beta 2-microglobulin and mortality, using a Cox's proportional hazards model. Moreover, mortality rates increased in proportion to increases in the amount of urinary beta 2-microglobulin excreted. These results suggest that the prognosis for cadmium-exposed subjects with proximal tubular dysfunction is unfavorable. The mortality rate tended to become higher as the severity of renal dysfunction progressed.
Nakagawa
H
H
Department of Public Health, Kanazawa Medical University, Ishikawa, Japan.
Nishijo
M
M
Morikawa
Y
Y
Tabata
M
M
Senma
M
M
Kitagawa
Y
Y
Kawano
S
S
Ishizaki
M
M
Sugita
N
N
Nishi
M
M
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002105:Cadmium Poisoning / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000652:urine*; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012737:Sex Factors; D001613:beta 2-Microglobulin / Q000652:urine*
D001613:beta 2-Microglobulin