title: Assessment of mercury exposure and malaria in a Brazilian Amazon riverine community.
abstract: Small-scale gold mining in the Brazilian Amazon occurs in areas with high rates of malaria transmission. Amazonian populations can be exposed to mercury through direct contact with the mining process and/or through fish consumption. Because of data from experimental studies, we examined the potential for mercury to affect host response to malaria. A cross-sectional survey was done in Jacareacanga, a riverine community in Para state, in a region of intense alluvial gold mining. A sample of 205 persons was selected by cluster sampling from the total population of approximately 2000. A brief medical history and exam were conducted, malaria slides were obtained, and hair samples were taken to measure mercury levels. The average hair mercury level was 8.6 micrograms/g, ranging from 0.3 to 83.2 micrograms/g. The most important predictors of elevated mercury levels were high fish consumption and low income. Although there was no prevalent malaria, the odds of reporting a past malaria infection was four times higher for those also reporting a history of working with mercury.
authors.affiliation: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Crompton
authors.forename: Ana Maria
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Ventura
authors.forename: Jose Maria
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: de Souza
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.forename: G Thomas
authors.initials: GT
authors.lastname: Strickland
authors.forename: Ellen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Silbergeld
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005399:Fishes; D005506:Food Contamination; D006197:Hair / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans; D008288:Malaria / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008630:Mercury Poisoning / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D008906:Mining; D018512:Parasitemia / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D010961:Plasmodium / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D015995:Prevalence; D012424:Rural Population; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical