J Agric Med Community Health.
2017 Mar;42(1):13-23. 10.5393/JAMCH.2017.42.1.013.
The Association of Blood Concentrations of Healvy Metals and Blood Pressure in Residents Living Near Janghang Copper Smelter in Korea
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju, Korea. ydkim@chungbuk.ac.kr
- 2Medical Device Safety Bureau Review System Reform Task Force, Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, Cheongju, Korea.
- 3Environmental Health Research Division, Environmental Health Research Department, National Institute of Environmental Research, Incheon, Korea.
- 4Department of Preventive Medicine, Chung-Ang University, College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
- KMID: 2377051
- DOI: http://doi.org/10.5393/JAMCH.2017.42.1.013
Abstract
OBJECTIVES
This study was conducted to evaluate a relationship between the blood concentrations of toxic metals and the blood pressure in people living near the copper smelter.
METHODS
The study included 570 adults living within 4km of the smelter. We compared systolic and diastolic blood pressure between tertiary groups for blood cadmium, mercury and lead levels, respectively. Multiple regression analysis was performed to identify risk factors affecting systolic and diastolic blood pressures.
RESULTS
In male subjects, there is a significant difference in the mean of systolic and diastolic blood pressure between tertiary groups of blood cadmium and mercury levels, but in women, there was no significant difference in the mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures in all tertiary groups of heavy metals. The results of multiple regression analysis showed that age, BMI, and cadmium concentration in men were risk factors for blood pressure.
CONCLUSIONS
Residents living near the Janghang smelter showed high concentrations of blood lead and cadmium, suggesting that they were exposed to high concentrations of heavy metals released from the smelter in the past. Such exposure may have caused some blood pressure increase. Especially, the concentration of cadmium in the case of men and the concentration of mercury in blood in the case of women were found to be significantly related to the increase of blood pressure. The local population should be advised to make efforts to reduce exposure to environmental contaminants, in order to minimize cardiovascular disease, and to pay close attention to any health problems possibly related to toxic metal exposure.
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