BLOOD AND PLACENTAL LEAD LEVELS IN AN INDIAN CITY - A PRELIMINARY-REPORT

A preliminary investigation was carried out in a hospital in the city of Lucknow, India, to provide information on the possible range of lea d (Pb) exposure in pregnant women and fetuses, to correlate high Pb le vels with various socioenvironmental factors, and to examine any possi ble association between reproductive outcome and Pb levels in this pop ulation. The results indicate that maternal blood lead levels were hig her in those who experienced abnormal deliveries and in those who ate nonvegetarian diets or drank groundwater compared with the respective control groups. Placenta, cord blood, and fetal membranes from both no rmal and abnormal delivery cases showed no significant differences in their Pb content. Other socioenvironmental factors did not influence t hese Pb levels. However, incidence of higher Pb levels in maternal blo od (17% and 38% with Pb > 25 mu g/dl in normal and abnormal deliveries , respectively) and cord blood (> 10 mu g/dl) reflect a need for regul ar monitoring and lowering of environmental Pb exposure.