Arsenic in groundwater and health problems in Bangladesh

Arsenic is listed as a hazardous material and is a suspect carcinogen, repo rtedly responsible for lung and skin cancers. It is also a teratogen, which means that it is capable of crossing the placental membrane into the metab olic system of unborn children. The level of arsenic allowed in drinking wa ter has been set at 0.01 mg l by the World Health Organization (WHO). Howev er, the maximum permissible limit of arsenic in drinking water of Banglades h is 0.05 mg/l. The actual toxicity of arsenic to the human body varies dep ending on several factors as general health and diet. It is a cumulative su bstance, which slowly passes out of the body through mine, hair, fingernail s/toenails and skin. In Bangladesh, most of the recognized stages of arseni c poisoning have been identified. The risk of arsenic poisoning in Banglade sh is increasing. The number of patients seriously affected by arsenic in d rinking water has now risen to 7000 demanding extensive research in this he ld. This note addresses tubewell contamination in groundwater and health-relate d impacts. A previous study made by the author presents the subsurface occu rrence of arsenic :Ind the reason of contamination. The latest statistics a vailable an the arsenic contamination in groundwater indicate that 52 distr icts around 80% of the total area of Bangladesh and estimate that around 40 million people ore at risk. Patients with melanosis. leuco-melanosis, kera tosis, hyperkeratosis, dorsum. non-petting oedema. gangrene and skin cancer have been identified. Among the affected people, the most common presentat ions are melanosis (93.5%), keratosis (68.3%), hyperkeratosis (37.6%) and d ipigmentation (leuco-melanosis) (39.1%). Cancers were found among 0.8% and actinic keratitis and Bowen's disease are identified among 3.1% cases. Acco rding to available data the Dhaka Community Hospital (DCH) identified 1903 patients with arsenical skin manifestations, the National Institute for Pre ventive and Social Medicine (NIPSOM) listed 800 arenicosis patients and the institute for Post-Graduate Medical Research (IPGMR) investigated 250 arse nical skin lessions patients. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights res erved.