title: A pilot study of blood lead levels and neurobehavioral function in children living in Chennai, India.
abstract: The relationship between blood lead level and neurodevelopment was assessed in a pilot cross-sectional study of 74 4-14-year-old children in Chennai, India. Mean blood lead level was 11.1 microg/dL (2.5-38.3). The Binet-Kamath IQ test and the Wide Range Assessment of Visual Motor Activity (WRAVMA) were administered to 58 children. Teachers completed the Connor's Behavioral Rating Scale. Excluding two outliers, IQ and WRAVMA composite scores were inversely related to blood lead level, with an effect size of approximately 6 points decline for a 10-microg/dL increase in blood lead. Children in the highest and lowest blood lead quartiles had mean IQs of 95.6+/-13.3 and 102.0+/-22.5, respectively. Behavior ratings were not associated with blood lead level. Lead exposure is a significant problem among Indian children, with many having blood lead levels associated with increased neurodevelopmental risk.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
authors.forename: David C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Bellinger
authors.forename: Howard
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: Kartigeyan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kalaniti
authors.forename: Naveen
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.forename: Pradeep
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rajan
authors.forename: Sankar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sambandam
authors.forename: Padmavathi
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ramaswamy
authors.forename: Kalpana
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Balakrishnan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007194:India; D007361:Intelligence Tests; D007854:Lead / Q000097:blood*; D007855:Lead Poisoning / Q000150:complications*; D008297:Male; D018570:Risk Assessment
chemical_list: D007854:Lead