EXTENSIVE LEAD-EXPOSURE IN CHILDREN LIVING IN AN AREA WITH PRODUCTIONOF LEAD-GLAZED TILES IN THE ECUADORIAN ANDES

We have determined the concentrations of lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg) in the blood of children living in two Andean villages in Ecuador with many family-owned cottage-type industries using Pb fi-om discarded car batteries and occasionally, utility batteries containin g Cd and Hg or the product-ion of glazed tiles, The battery metals are ground together with water to a suspension, which is applied manually onto the tiles and then fused at about 1,200 degrees C in sawdust-fir ed kilns. Children aged 4-15 years were recruited from the schools wit h the assistance of the school-teachers, Children from homes with and without tile-glazing activities were to be included, Blood metal conce ntrations were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrome try (ICP-MS). The children had extremely high blood lead concentration s (B-Pb), which ranged between 100 and 1,100 mu g/l (median 510 mu g/l n = 82). Children from families engaged in tile-glazing production ha d significantly higher B-Pb (median 600 mu g/l) than those living in h omes with no such activity (median 210 mu g/l), although the B-Pb of t he latter were nonetheless clearly elevated. B-Cd and B-Hg; were low ( medians 0.25 mu g Cd/l and 1.6 mu g Hg/l respectively) indicating that the exposure from utility batteries containing Cd and Hg was low. The blood hemoglobin concentrations decreased significantly with rising B -Pb, indicating an effect on the heme synthesis, This was supported by a marked increase in the blood concentration of protoporphyrins with increasing B-Pb, It can be concluded that children from families with cottage industries producing glazed tiles are at risk for severe healt h effects due to high lead exposure.