Feb 4, 2015 - and increased risk of peripheral arterial disease. Circulation. 2004;109:3196â3201. 9. Aamir M, Sattar A, Dawood MM, Dilawar M, Ijaz A, et al.
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The 28th Asia Pacific Occupational Safety and Health Organization Conference, Seminar & Expo, Jakarta 8-12 Oct. 2013
Homocysteine as biological indicator for occupational lead exposure among industrial workers Shamsul B.S.1
1Department
of Community Medicine, School of Medicine, University Malaysia Sabah, 88400 UMS Road, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.
What is homocysteine? •
Homocysteine is an amino acid, which is now considered a risk factor in several disease states.
•
Elevated levels of homocysteine have been linked to increased risk of disease development and death from common conditions.
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Homocysteine and health related problems
Source : http://www.homocysteine.org.uk
Source : www.diabetesjain.com
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Throughout life the level of homocysteine in plasma increases in both males and females.
Source : http://www.homocysteine.org.uk
Lifestyle factors which increase homocysteine levels include: • Diet - high alcohol intake and coffee consumption • Smoking • Lack of physical exercise and excessive stress • Obesity • Drugs and certain diseases also influence homocysteine metabolism • Exposure to heavy metal (etc. lead) ???
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Safe clinical guidelines
Lead Poisoning • • • • • •
Lead has no known biological function. There is no proven safe lower limit for lead. Lead Pb++, competes with Ca++, Fe++ It is cheap, useful, easy to mine, therefore Lead is ubiquitous- in air, food, water, soil, ceilings etc. Leaded petrol means that all environmental dusts are high in lead-contaminating ceiling dust, topsoil, window wells etc.
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Contribution of Sources
Distribution of Lead • • • • • •
95% long bones. Binds into matrix. Released during osteolysis. 4% brain, liver, kidneys. 1% blood. Crosses placenta, foetal BBB is open
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Risk groups Children Pregnant women and developing fetus. Specific occupational exposure
Effects of lead exposure on young children
Lowered IQ Learning disabilities Attention deficit and hyperactivity Other behavioral issues Impaired hearing Anemia Decreased growth
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Health Effects of Lead
Study objective This study aims to identify the relationship between lead exposure and homocysteine levels among the automotive component manufacturing factory workers.
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Methodology • • •
•
•
Cross-sectional study design. Total 80 workers (40 lead exposed; 40 lead unexposed). Blood samples (finger-prick) and analyzed for blood lead using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry Graphite Furnace Model GBC 908AA. Homocysteine measured using ELISA Hcy Kit. Questionnaires were used to obtain demography information of respondents.
Results Table 1: The comparison of blood lead and homocysteine between the exposed and comparative group Exposed (n=40)
