Page 27 - JCTR-10-3

Journal of Clinical and Translational Research 2024; 10(3): 201-208

Journal of Clinical and Translational Research

Journal homepage: http://www.jctres.com/en/home

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Levels of lead in blood and water in occupationally exposed and

unexposed population of the Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh: baseline

analysis of a prospective cohort study

Arti Gupta *, Mukesh Tripathi , Bari Siddiqui MA , Rakesh Upparakadiyala , Prudhvinath A. Reddy ,
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1
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2
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Desu Rama Mohan , VamsiKrishna Reddy K , Desai V. Sripad 3
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1 Department of Community and Family Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences Mangalagiri, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India,
2 Department of Anesthesiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences Mangalagiri, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India, Department of Biochemistry,
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All India Institute of Medical Sciences Mangalagiri, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India, Department of General Medicine, All India Institute
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of Medical Sciences Mangalagiri, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India, Department of Radiodiagnosis, All India Institute of Medical Sciences
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Mangalagiri, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India, Department of Hospital Administration, All India Institute of Medical Sciences Mangalagiri,
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Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India
ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT
Article history: Background: Lead can be ingested, inhaled, or absorbed through the skin, leading to morbidity
Received: November 8, 2023 and mortality.
Accepted: April 13, 2024 Aim: This study aimed to estimate and compare the prevalence of high blood lead levels (BLLs)
Published Online: May 28, 2024 among the adult population with and without occupational lead exposures.
Methods: A baseline survey of a prospective cohort study was conducted in 2022 among 180 adult
Keywords: males and females (20 – 60 years old) in the Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh. The study participants
Lead were divided accordingly into three groups: direct occupationally exposed (Group 1); indirect air
Water pollution-exposed (Group 2); and indirect non-occupationally exposed (Group 3). The participants
Occupation were interviewed using a structured data collection instrument. Blood and water lead levels were
Worker estimated using a graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometer. We defined statistical
Pollution significance as P < 0.05.
Result: Among the studied participants, 65.56% were less than 40 years of age and 74.44% were males.
*Corresponding author: The BLLs ranged from 2.15 µg/dL to 19.03 µg/dL. The mean BLLs were 8.50 ± 2.36, 7.34 ± 3.02, and
Arti Gupta 5.65 ± 2.91 µg/dL for Groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. The lead content in samples of 20 L-canned
Department of Community and water in each group was more than 10 µg/L. On adjustment in multivariate analysis, the male gender
Family Medicine, All India Institute of and direct occupational exposure are significant risk factors for high BLLs (i.e., ≥5 µg/dL).
Medical Sciences Mangalagiri, Guntur, Conclusion: Both occupationally exposed and unexposed groups in the study had higher mean
Andhra Pradesh, India BLLs than recommended. The mean BLL in the occupationally exposed group was significantly
Email: guptaarti2003@aiimsmangalagiri. higher compared to the general population. Higher lead content in drinking water may expose
edu.in
individuals to lead-related symptoms.
Relevance for Patients: High BLLs can have significant negative health effects on the human
© 2024 Author(s). This is an Open- body. Lead is particularly harmful to the central nervous system and cardiovascular system.
Access article distributed under the terms
of the Creative Commons Attribution-
Noncommercial License, permitting all
non-commercial use, distribution, and 1. Introduction
reproduction in any medium, provided the
original work is properly cited. Lead occurs naturally in the Earth’s crust and poses significant toxicity to humans when
ingested, inhaled, or absorbed through the skin [1]. It persists in various environmental
mediums, such as soil, air, drinking water, and homes, where it accumulates and does
not degrade [1]. High levels of lead exposure can have adverse effects on adults, such
as inducing coma, convulsions, and death [1]. Reports have identified six primary

DOI: https://doi.org/10.36922/jctr.23.00130