title: Rapid drop in infant blood lead levels during the transition to unleaded gasoline use in Santiago, Chile.
abstract: This study was conducted to relate blood lead levels in infants to changes in lead emissions in Santiago, Chile, a heavily polluted setting where leaded gasoline began to be replaced with unleaded gasoline in 1993. Over an 18-mo period, 422 infants had blood lead levels, cotinine, and iron status determined at 12 mo. Blood lead levels fell at an average rate of 0.5 microg/dl every 2 mo, from 8.3 to 5.9 microg/dl, as the city experienced a net fall of 30% in the quantity of leaded gasoline sold. Time progression, car ownership, serum cotinine, and type of housing were significantly associated with a blood lead level > or = 10 microg/dl. In this study, the authors demonstrated that infant blood lead levels, even if relatively low, can drop very rapidly in conjunction with decreases in environmental lead exposure.
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile. ppino@med.uchile.cl
authors.forename: Paulina
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pino
authors.forename: Tomás
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Walter
authors.forename: Manuel J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Oyarzún
authors.forename: Matthew J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Burden
authors.forename: Betsy
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lozoff
mesh_terms: D002273:Carcinogens / Q000737:chemistry*; D002677:Chile / Q000453:epidemiology; D003367:Cotinine / Q000097:blood; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005742:Gasoline; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007501:Iron / Q000097:blood; D007854:Lead / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D018986:Motor Vehicles / Q000191:economics; D010067:Ownership; D011203:Poverty; D011640:Public Policy; D013997:Time Factors; D014505:Urban Population; D001335:Vehicle Emissions / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D002273:Carcinogens; D005742:Gasoline; D001335:Vehicle Emissions; D007854:Lead; D007501:Iron; D003367:Cotinine