Tracking Exposures Through Louisiana’s Adult Blood Lead Epidemiology Surveillance (ABLES), 2012–2016

Details

• Personal Author:
  Green R ; Lewis J
• Description:
  Lead has no beneficial use in the body, and its toxic effects are well documented. Lead affects many organ systems over a wide range of dose levels. Chronic lead exposure in adults may result in adverse effects in neurological, hematological, renal, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, and reproductive systems. There is wide variability among individuals in the symptoms and responses to lead poisoning. Lead poisoning usually occurs from chronic exposure. The degree and severity of effects depend on the dose and duration of exposure. Symptoms differ among individuals and do not always occur at specific dose levels. Reported symptoms of lead poisoning in adults include: headache; anorexia; weakness; excessive tiredness; irritability; difficulty concentrating; constipation; abdominal discomfort; fine tremors; reduced sex drive; and weakness in fingers, wrists, or ankles. However, lead poisoning is often a "silent disease" where symptoms are not observed until serious damage has occurred. Diagnosis should not rely on the appearance of symptoms. The only way to determine lead poisoning is by testing for lead levels in blood. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires companies to have a biomonitoring and medical surveillance program when workers are exposed to airborne inorganic lead levels greater than the 30 micrograms per cubic meter (time-weighted average) more than 30 days in a year. Exposed workers are to be tested at least every six months, and testing frequency increases to every two months when a worker's blood lead level is greater than 40 µg/dL. Louisiana law requires that healthcare providers, including clinical laboratories, report all laboratory tests for lead, mercury, cadmium, arsenic and carbon monoxide to the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH), Office of Public Health (OPH), Section of Environmental Epidemiology and Toxicology (SEET). SEET participates in the Centers for Disease Control's Adult Blood Lead Epidemiology Surveillance (ABLES) Program, which determines the action threshold at which blood lead test results for adults ages 16 years and older are investigated to determine the source of exposure. Although in July 2015, ABLES reduced the lead action threshold from 25 micrograms per deciliter (µg/dL) to 10 µg/dL, an elevated lead test is still defined as greater or equal to 25 µg/dL for this report. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Epidemiology Lead Lead Poisoning Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Poisoning Public Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Blood Lead Levels Lead Poisoning Medical Screening Occupational Exposure Public Health Surveillance Worker Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Newsletter
• Place as Subject:
  Louisiana ; OSHA Region 6
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  2-3
• Volume:
  28
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20066190
• Citation:
  LA Morbid Rep 2017 Jul-Aug; 28(4):2-3
• Email:
  jocelyn.lewis@la.gov
• CAS Registry Number:
  Lead (CAS RN 7439-92-1)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• Performing Organization:
  Louisiana State Office of Public Health
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20150720
• Source Full Name:
  Louisiana Morbidity Report
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:2657e32896466bbf84a747c5d08d704af82066392ac8c203fec91d1f2991afd81921ed8cdee92ccf41951f629134d05c0f7bfaf9c2c76198f7c318ae8c382d3d
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/212687/cdc_212687_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 538.45 KB ]