title: Risk factors for mercury exposure of children in a rural mining town in northern Chile.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Traditional gold mining is associated with mercury exposure. Especially vulnerable to its neurotoxic effects is the developing nervous system of a child. We aimed to investigate risk factors of mercury exposure among children in a rural mining town in Chile.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using a validated questionnaire distributed to the parents of the children, a priori mercury risk factors, potential exposure pathways and demographics of the children were obtained. Mercury levels were measured through analyzing fingernail samples. Logistic regression modeling the effect of risk factors on mercury levels above the 75(th) percentile were made, adjusted for potential confounders.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The 288 children had a mean age of 9.6 years (SD = 1.9). The mean mercury level in the study population was 0.13 µg/g (SD 0.11, median 0.10, range 0.001-0.86 µg/g). The strongest risk factor for children's odds of high mercury levels (>75(th) percentile, 0.165 µg/g) was to play inside a house where a family member worked with mercury (OR adjusted 3.49 95% CI 1.23-9.89). Additionally, children whose parents worked in industrial gold mining had higher odds of high mercury levels than children whose parents worked in industrial copper mining or outside mining activities.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Mercury exposure through small-scale gold mining might affect children in their home environments. These results may further help to convince the local population of banning mercury burning inside the households.
authors.affiliation: Center for International Health Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) at the Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, University Hospital Munich (LMU), Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Johan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ohlander
authors.forename: Stella Maria
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Huber
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schomaker
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Heumann
authors.forename: Rudolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schierl
authors.forename: Bernhard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Michalke
authors.forename: Oskar G
authors.initials: OG
authors.lastname: Jenni
authors.forename: Jon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Caflisch
authors.forename: Daniel Moraga
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Muñoz
authors.forename: Ondine S
authors.initials: OS
authors.lastname: von Ehrenstein
authors.forename: Katja
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Radon
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002677:Chile; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008628:Mercury / Q000633:toxicity*; D008906:Mining; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D008628:Mercury