title: Serum lead, cadmium, and zinc levels in newborns with neural tube defects from a polluted zone in Mexico.
abstract: Serum lead, cadmium and zinc levels from 31 newborns with neural tube defects (NTD), and 54 healthy controls living in a polluted area in Mexico were estimated using atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS). NTD family history was found to be of greater importance in the case group (OR 6.95, 95% CI 1.51-36.3, p=0.002). In 25% of the children, serum lead concentrations were above the admissible maximum level (AML) of 10 microg/dL within 24 h of extra-uterine life. Cadmium concentrations were below the AML. Zinc deficiency was found in nine (29%) of the cases and four (9.3%) of the controls (p=0.04). The logistic regression multivariate analysis showed no correlation between NTD and high levels of any of these metals; however, a positive correlation was found to zinc deficiency (OR 5.0, 95% CI 1.07-23.00, p=0.04). These results focus attention to the surrounding nutritional and maternal health factors of major importance in disease etiology.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigación Biomédica de la Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila, Biomedical Research Center at the Autonomous University of Coahuila, Mexico.
authors.forename: María de Lourdes
authors.initials: Mde L
authors.lastname: Carrillo-Ponce
authors.forename: Verónica Araceli
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Martínez-Ordaz
authors.forename: Víctor Manuel
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Velasco-Rodríguez
authors.forename: Andrés
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hernández-García
authors.forename: María Concepción
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Hernández-Serrano
authors.forename: Francisca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sanmiguel
mesh_terms: D002104:Cadmium / Q000097:blood*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004787:Environmental Pollution; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007854:Lead / Q000097:blood*; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008800:Mexico / Q000453:epidemiology; D009436:Neural Tube Defects / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D013054:Spectrophotometry, Atomic; D015032:Zinc / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D002104:Cadmium; D007854:Lead; D015032:Zinc