A meta-analysis of blood lead levels in India and the attributable burden of disease.

Multiple studies in India have found elevated blood lead levels (BLLs) in target populations. However the data have not yet been evaluated to understand population-wide exposure levels. We used arithmetic mean blood lead data published from 2010 to 2018 on Indian populations to calculate the average BLLs for multiple subgroups. We then calculated the attributable disease burden in IQ decrement and Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs). Our Pubmed search yielded 1066 articles. Of these, 31 studies representing the BLLs of 5472 people in 9 states met our study criteria. Evaluating these, we found a mean BLL of 6.86 µg/dL (95% CI: 4.38-9.35) in children and 7.52 µg/dL (95% CI: 5.28-9.76) in non-occupationally exposed adults. We calculated that these exposures resulted in 4.9 million DALYs (95% CI: 3.9-5.6) in the states we evaluated. Population-wide BLLs in India remain elevated despite regulatory action to eliminate leaded petrol, the most significant historical source. The estimated attributable disease burden is larger than previously calculated, particularly with regard to associated intellectual disability outcomes in children. Larger population-wide BLL studies are required to inform future calculations. Policy responses need to be developed to mitigate the worst exposures.

Spatial Associations Between Contaminated Land and Socio Demographics in Ghana.

Associations between contaminated land and socio demographics are well documented in high-income countries. In low- and middle-income countries, however, little is known about the extent of contaminated land and possible demographic correlations. This is an important yet sparsely researched topic with potentially significant public health implications as exposure to pollution remains a leading source of morbidity and mortality in low-income countries. In this study, we review the associations between several socio demographic factors (population, population density, unemployment, education, and literacy) and contaminated sites in Ghana. Within this context, both correlation and association intend to show the relationship between two variables, namely contaminated sites and socio demographics. Aggregated district level 2010 census data from Ghana Statistical Service and contaminated site location data from Pure Earth's Toxic Sites Identification Program (TSIP) were spatially evaluated using the number of sites per kilometer squared within districts as the unit of measurement. We found a low to medium positive correlation (ρ range: 0.285 to 0.478) between contaminated sites and the following socio demographics: higher population density, higher unemployment, greater education, and higher literacy rate. These results support previous studies and suggest that several socio demographic factors may be reasonably accurate predictors of contaminated site locations. More research and targeted data collection is needed to better understand these associations with the ultimate goal of developing a predictive model.