title: A prospective study of arsenic exposure from drinking water and incidence of skin lesions in Bangladesh.
abstract: Elevated concentrations of arsenic in groundwater pose a public health threat to millions of people worldwide. The authors aimed to evaluate the association between arsenic exposure and skin lesion incidence among participants in the Health Effects of Arsenic Longitudinal Study (HEALS). The analyses used data on 10,182 adults free of skin lesions at baseline through the third biennial follow-up of the cohort (2000-2009). Discrete-time hazard regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals for incident skin lesions. Multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios for incident skin lesions comparing 10.1-50.0, 50.1-100.0, 100.1-200.0, and ≥200.1 μg/L with ≤10.0 μg/L of well water arsenic exposure were 1.17 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.92, 1.49), 1.69 (95% CI: 1.33, 2.14), 1.97 (95% CI: 1.58, 2.46), and 2.98 (95% CI: 2.40, 3.71), respectively (P(trend) = 0.0001). Results were similar for the other measures of arsenic exposure, and the increased risks remained unchanged with changes in exposure in recent years. Dose-dependent associations were more pronounced in females, but the incidence of skin lesions was greater in males and older individuals. Chronic arsenic exposure from drinking water was associated with increased incidence of skin lesions, even at low levels of arsenic exposure (<100 μg/L).
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Studies, The University of Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Argos
authors.forename: Tara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kalra
authors.forename: Brandon L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Pierce
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Faruque
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Parvez
authors.forename: Tariqul
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Islam
authors.forename: Alauddin
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ahmed
authors.forename: Rabiul
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hasan
authors.forename: Khaled
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hasan
authors.forename: Golam
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sarwar
authors.forename: Diane
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Levy
authors.forename: Vesna
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Slavkovich
authors.forename: Joseph H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Graziano
authors.forename: Paul J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Rathouz
authors.forename: Habibul
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ahsan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001151:Arsenic / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine; D020261:Arsenic Poisoning; D001459:Bangladesh / Q000453:epidemiology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004326:Drinking; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced*; D014867:Water / Q000032:analysis; D014881:Water Supply
chemical_list: D014867:Water; D001151:Arsenic